(Although some people are at peace with laugh lines and wrinkles; I am. To me, they are eloquent witnesses to the joys and pains that come with living a full and colored life.)
But some people are blessed with "eternal" youth. Jocelyn Rosendahl (mother of Jen Rosendahl) looks like she’s 24. She looks so young, she would always be mistaken for Jen’s sister. Jen would often tell her to dress down a bit so people would say she’s a "lola."
But it’s hard to make Jocelyn look old. In a pair of tight jeans and a simple shirt – she looks young and stunning. One time in Germany, where the Rosendahls were based for many years, Jocelyn went to the grocery. Teenage boys spotted her struggling with numerous grocery bags. They rescued her while vying for her attention. "Nag-papacute sila sa akin." And when her grocery bags were in place, she told them, "You know, you can be my kids!" The young boys scampered – back to the grocery store in search of young, pretty girls they could rescue. Looking 25, today, Jocelyn is 43. One of her secrets is getting enough sleep.
Eula Valdez is not only a brilliant actress, she is also one of the most youthful-looking women I’ve seen. Her mother, according to her, didn’t have wrinkles and this runs in the Amorsolo side of her family. Wasn‘t she part of the original Bagets cast? "Bagets forever," she quipped. Eula feels young, "hanggang ngayon, feeling ko bagets na bagets pa rin ako." But she said that she exerts an extra effort to maintain her youthful looks.
It really pays to take care of oneself especially when you are in a business that celebrates physical beauty and youth. You wouldn‘t think that Eula is in her mid-thirties. Someone in the Homeboy audience confidently declared that Eula couldn’t be over 25. "Being with a younger husband helps. It makes me feel young," she chortled.
The fabulous Tessa Prieto-Valdes shared that "being with my kids makes me feel young." According to her, life is short, one must enjoy it. Asked if she is affected by what people think about her outrageous costumes that she wears wherever she desires to wear them, she says that for as long as she doesn‘t hurt anyone, she will continue to wear and to do things that make her happy. Tessa is a beautiful person inside and out. I adore her!
The irrepressible Rico J. Puno was also a guest in our Staying Young episode on Homeboy. Rico J. looks even better today. As a performer, he is crispier. As a man, he is undoubtedly hotter. He has remained not just as a total entertainer but a total man as well.
It’s amazing that on and off the stage, that much-vaunted animal appeal has not been diminished by the years. And the best thing is, this man has remained cool, funny and amiable. Rico J. is a natural and I think he doesn’t take this noisy and nasty world seriously. Instead, he laughs his way through a rich life.
"Interact with the young," he admonished the audience. Know what they’re talking about, what songs they’re singing, what dance they’re dancing and discover the fun. Don’t go against the tide is the mantra of this ageless music superstar. He shared the story about men going usually to electronics/gadgets stores every time they would go abroad, while his manager, the fabulously ageless Norma Japitana and company would troop to the cosmetics section of department stores. This has changed today. Rico unabashedly admits that now he buys creams, lotions and other cosmetic products for himself.
"Dati, toothbrush at ligo lang, okay na ako. Ngayon, marami na akong nilalagay sa balat at mukha ko!"
I think staying young is a decision one makes. You work at it both on the inside and the outside. And then you make it happen.
And you feel good!