MANILA, Philippines – How does anyone really know when the time for marrying has arrived?
I asked my nephew, second-generation restaurateur and general manager of Amici restaurant, Philip Moran. He met freelance makeup artist Carmie Locsin on a blind date and had been dating her for three years before they knew the right time had come.
“Someone once asked me how I knew that Carmie was the one,” quipped Philip. “The answer is that it was when I could see that I was becoming a better person because of Carmie that I realized that she was God’s gift to me. Since I met her, my life has taken on so much more meaning. It’s because of Carmie that I’ve learned to truly love and give myself to someone outside of myself.
“I prayed to St. Joseph on to how to propose to Carmie,” added Philip. “And when we were about to set the date for the wedding, it happened that the only available date was March 19 in Santuario de San Jose — the feast day of St. Joseph.”
Philip shared that when Carmie was growing up, she prayed daily to St. Joseph to find the right spouse because her mom told her to. “I guess it was providential that our wedding date fell on St. Joseph’s feast day.”
Carmie, whom I have seen during family reunions but have not gotten to know very well, made these promises to Philip in their wedding video: “Philip, I promise to be patient and to always respect you. I promise to pray for you every day. I promise to raise our children to have good values and to put God above all else. I promise to never give up on our relationship and make wherever I am your home. I promise to love you the most that I can in the best way I know how. Thank you for asking me to marry you.”
Carmie opted to do her own makeup on her wedding day. “All my girls from the entourage were in the room with me, as well as my hairstylist and makeup-artist friends. It was organized chaos,” she shared. “I was expecting to be my own worst client but I’ve never felt so calm and relaxed during a wedding. If Kate Middleton can do it, so can I.”
Philip is the second son of my brother, Danny Moran, and his wife, Tessie Moran. Carmie is the daughter of Ramon Locsin and Inday Locsin.
The wedding Mass was celebrated by Fr. Edgar Soria and Fr. Bong Tupino last March 19 at Santuario de San Jose Church in Greenhills. Carmie’s wedding gown was made by Kristel Yulo.
Oh, and yes, I was a ninang at the wedding.