A mother and her daughter owe each other love and respect – no matter their respective shortcomings.
This was the “sermon” given by Senators Alan Peter and Pia Cayetano in the Mother’s Day episode of Cayetano in Action with Boy Abunda (CIA with BA) in which they helped mend the relationship of a mother and a daughter that had been left broken for years.
The mother and the daughter drifted apart after the latter failed to pay a P10,000 loan taken for her by her mother back in 2014.
The mother has since been shouldering the debt, washing their neighbors’ clothes in order to save up P1,000 every week.
More than her daughter’s failure to pay, the mother cried over the hurtful words she would receive every time she prodded her daughter to help her settle the loan.
To resolve the issue, Senator Pia vowed to pay for the nine-year-old debt on the condition that the daughter be respectful to her mother moving forward.
“Ang dami naming pwedeng sabihin na solusyon. Napakasimple lang ng solusyon. Pero magpakita ka naman ng respeto first and foremost,” she told the daughter.
Senator Alan shared the sentiment and, alluding to the Bible, encouraged the daughter to “honor your mother.”
“I’m not saying she’s the perfect mother, but the most imperfect mother still needs the respect ng kanyang anak,” he said.
“Saying sorry makes you a stronger, not a weaker, person. Ngayong may pagkakataon ka [na humingi ng tawad sa nanay mo], hihintayin mo pa ba na wala na siya?” he added.
He also encouraged her to be a good example to her own daughter. “Ang dating sa akin sa diskusyon natin ngayon, dahil mali siya, sa tingin mo she deserves to be treated that way. ‘Yan ba ang gusto mong ipakita sa anak mo imbes na isang pamilya [kayo]?” he said.
The sibling-senators likewise encouraged the mother to always be the first to show humility and respect.
“Nanay, marunong din ako mag-sorry, walang masamang magsabi ng sorry, tao lang din tayo,” Senator Pia, who is a mother herself, told her.
In the end, the daughter and the mother apologized to each other.
“Sorry rin kung may pagkukulang ako,” the mother told her daughter as they hugged.
“Ikaw ang panganay, ikaw ang una kong inalagaan at minahal, kaya ‘wag mong isipin na porke’t lagi kita napapagalitan ay hindi na kita mahal,” she added.
Sealing the discussion by greeting the three women a happy mother’s day, Senator Alan said anger is like borrowing money from a usurer, with the interest growing until it becomes unmanageable.
“Ang galit, parang 5-6. Kapag hindi mo nabayaran nang isang araw, nagkakainteres y’ung galit hanggang hindi na lang kayo nag-uusap,” he said.
