A little earlier today as I was watching Kris on TV delivering her final message to her mom, former president Corazon Aquino, or Tita Cory for short, I was struck by what she said about the kind of mother Tita Cory is to her.

She said Tita Cory always made her feel like a winner. She went on to recount that she called her mom one time and she was crying because she lost a competition (in school, most likely). Kris was worried that she had disappointed his dad by not winning.

Tita Cory, in all her mommy glory, cheered her up by saying that it’s okay for her to lose. She should be glad instead that she graced the covers of international magazines at her young age when she was campaigning for his dad, a feat that none of her classmates has achieved. In essence, that made her a real winner.

I wish I could be that kind of mom to my son: comforting, reassuring, and capable of bringing out the best in my child.

I first heard this song when I bought Jose Mari Chan’s Constant Change cassette tape in 1989. The song speaks of a man’s fervent affection for the love of his life. I did not know then that this was originally a poem written in 1973 by the late Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino, Jr. (when he was incarcerated at Fort Bonifacio) for his wife, former President Corazon Aquino, on the occasion of their 19th wedding anniversary.

Find out why Ninoy fell in love with Tita Cory not once, but thrice, in the song version of this poem.

Title: I Have Fallen in Love (with the Same Woman Three Times)
Performed by : Jose Mari Chan
Album: Constant Change


I have fallen in love
with the same woman three times;
In a day spanning 19 years
of tearful joys and joyful tears.

I loved her first when she was young,
enchanting and vibrant, eternally new.
She was brilliant, fragrant,
and cool as the morning dew.

I fell in love with her the second time;
when first she bore her child and mine
always by my side, the source of my strength,
helping to turn the tide.

But there were candles to burn
the world was my concern;
while our home was her domain.
and the people were mine
while the children were hers to maintain;

So it was in those eighteen years and a day.
’till I was detained; forced in prison to stay.

Suddenly she’s our sole support;
source of comfort,
our wellspring of Hope.
on her shoulders felt the burden of Life.

I fell in love again,
with the same woman the third time.
Looming from the battle,
her courage will never fade

Amidst the hardships she has remained,
undaunted and unafraid.
she is calm and composed,
she is God’s lovely maid.

You will always be in our hearts, Madame President!