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WHENEVER Father’s Day approaches, Camille Villar—the only
daughter of one of the busiest men in the country—is often ribbed
by her friends as to how much of time she gets to spend with
Nacionalista Party chair and Senate President Manny Villar.
So when on the eve of Father’s Day (which was
celebrated yesterday) we bumped into Camille and put the same
predictable question to her. We were quite surprised to hear of the
extent to which this particular father-daughter relationship
thrives.
“Ever since I was born, I grew up seeing my
father surrounded by different people. From prospective home buyers
during his early days as a businessman to local constituents and
fellow legislators now that he is a public servant,” 22-year-old
Camille, who works as marketing manager in the family firm Vista
Land told me.
She went on, “On the contrary, despite his
seemingly endless meetings, my father never fails to spend time with
me and our family. Despite having a very hectic schedule seven days
a week, he is truly a family man. Before stepping out of the house
to go along with his day, he always makes it a point to have
breakfast with us.
“Together with my mom, Rep. Cynthia Villar of
Las Piñas, who is also very workaholic like my dad, and my two
siblings, we talk about anything under the sun, from heavy stuff
like the skyrocketing price of oil to the not-so-serious like
what’s currently playing at the cinemas or the latest showbiz
chismis.”
According to Camille, even when his workload at
the pressure cooker like atmosphere of the Senate is at boiling
point, her dad always finds time to call just to see how her day is
going.
She said, “In my case, he would call me from
time to time just to check where I am or how are things in the
office. And whenever a meeting is canceled or moved to a later time,
he would call me to ask if I’m free for lunch or just to have
coffee. This is the reason why I developed an unbreakable bond with
my dad.”
According to this loving daughter, she always
looks up to dad for guidance, not just in life but in work as well.
“My dad has a gift of making even the most difficult things
simple. Just when I think that there is no solution to a problem, he
dishes up some words of wisdom that simplifies even the most
complicated stuff.”
While she is at it, Camille takes the
opportunity to bunk what she refers to as “misconceptions” about
her dad. She explained, “One misconception about my father is that
he is a very serious kind of guy. That he always comes across as a
stiff individual, someone who does not have a funny bone in his
body.
“If the truth be told, my dad has an
incredible sense of humor. I always have a blast whenever we have
our bonding sessions, whether when we’re watching movies or just
having dinner.
“He’s also one of the most thoughtful
persons in the world. Come Valentine’s Day and other special
occasions, he always has flowers not just for me and my mom, but to
all of his female employees.
“My dad is the best mentor that one can ever
have. He taught me to be hardworking, compassionate, grounded and
most important, God-fearing. Unlike those people who were born with
a golden spoon in their mouth, my dad was born and raised in
poverty, hence the reason why he has stressed the importance of
Sipag at Tiyaga towards the achievement of our goals.
“And lastly, my dad taught us how important
family is. That no matter how rough the journey through life
becomes, no matter where fate brings you, family is the only
constant thing that remains.
“So to sum up everything, all I can say is my
dad is the best dad in the world and I am very fortunate indeed to
have someone like him for a dad. I am very thankful for the time we
spent with each other for it has definitely shaped the way that I am
now.”
What a touching tribute on Father’s Day from a
doting daughter to her dad who many are predicting is well on track
to being “father of the nation” come the 2010 presidential
election.
rjottings@yahoo.com
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