A diamond is forever
She was 19, and he, 26, when they first met. And according to their constant chaperone and eventual maid-of-honor Josie Padilla Rufino, the dashing Ronnie Concepcion fell for the beauteous Batangueña Menchu de las Alas, “at first sight.”
According to Josie, who is Menchu’s niece but only four years younger than she is, “Mench” found Ronnie mahangin at first. Which isn’t surprising, says Josie, because his family had an air-conditioning business. (The air-conditioning business is now but a part of the giant Concepcion Industrial Corp., which has grown to include elevators and escalators.)
After two years of courtship, Ronnie, a CPA with a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Menchu, a UST fresh graduate, wed on Nov. 21, 1959. Together, they raised five children, 17 grandchildren and two great grandchildren while building an industrial empire.
Menchu believes she has led a charmed life. So, when she found out eight years ago that Ronnie was slowly deteriorating into his own world, showing early signs of Alzheimer’s, she took it as a test of her faith in God and in Ronnie and considered it a blessing rather than a curse.
“Yes, it is a life-transforming experience, but it can be rewarding as well,” Menchu wrote in her book Giving Back, whose words were plucked straight from her heart. In one chapter of the book, she shared that in the past, photographers would be scrambling to take their photos in parties, during which they were always ushered to the VIP table. “Now, we have to content ourselves with sitting quietly at the end of the table, or in a quiet corner of the room.”
Copies of the book, her personal journal on living with a beloved with Alzheimer’s, were given to friends who attended their renewal of vows on their 60th wedding anniversary at the San Pedro Calungsod Church along Sumulong Highway in Antipolo, just beside the sprawling haven Ronnie built for her and their family. Built on their property, the church is Ronnie and Menchu’s gift to the people of Antipolo. Lined with balconies on both sides, it has a stained glass floor-to-ceiling wall behind the altar.
“In this time, which may well be the most challenging of Ronnie’s and my life, the parish is our ultimate manifestation of gratitude for all the blessings so generously bestowed by our Lord to my family,” Menchu says.
Indeed, the San Pedro Calungsod Church is beautiful, nestled amidst the trees of verdant Antipolo and overlooking the rest of Metro Manila. A rock, much like the woman whose wish it was for it to rise and be a haven of faith.
* * *
Menchu was ethereal in her Merle Marcelo ankle-length dress, dazzling like a diamond as she was escorted down the aisle by youngest son Ton to the tune of When I Fall in Love as Ronnie waited for her by the altar. Earlier, her great grandchild Anna Inocencio, who was flower girl, and sons Robie, Jojo and Patrick led the way. Rica waited with her dad by the altar.
As Antipolo Bishop Francisco de Leon reminded all in his homily, a 60th wedding anniversary, like a diamond, is precious in its rarity. He recounted that once, instead of responding with “I do” or “I will,” a young couple he recently married answered “Absolutely!” when asked if they would take each other for better or for worse.
Thus, though Ronnie managed a silent nod, Menchu answered “Absolutely!” for both of them when the priest asked if they would renew their commitment to each other on their diamond anniversary.
No doubt, in word and in deed.
After the Mass, guests attended a reception at nearby La Veranda, the plantation-type estate Ronnie built for his family in Antipolo, where capiz lamps on hundreds of trees swayed with the breeze in welcome. It was a breathtaking sight, even just driving up the long road to the house, which, like the church, overlooks the lights of Metro Manila.
After the sumptuous buffet dinner catered by chef Florabel Co-Yatco, Menchu thanked over 200 guests who had made the drive to Antipolo to celebrate with them.
“I was hesitant to celebrate this day since as you can see, my husband is not anymore in the condition to celebrate parties. He is no longer aware of your presence and is unable to enjoy the evening with us. But who knows it may be possible that deep down in his mind, something is still going on, and maybe he wants to thank all of you, but just cannot express it.
“Ronnie to me was invincible, he was indestructible, he was strong and unbeatable, he could never do anything wrong. He was my superhero. For 50 years, life was perfect, but then our Lord perhaps had other plans for the family, He said I have been giving you all the graces for the past 50 years, now I want to test your love for me, so I’m giving you a trial. And the trial He gave me is something — He gave me an illness that is very heartbreaking.
“His condition now is a blessing because it has made the family stronger and more united, and we get to love each other more,” Menchu added, as she gazed lovingly at Ronnie and their children and grandchildren.
* * *
Let me share portions of Menchu’s book that I believe make concrete all wedding vows.
Once, when Ronnie’s neurologist was giving him some diagnostic tests, he was asked to write the first sentence that came to his mind. And though with a struggle, he wrote, “I love my wife.”
Menchu has elected to be Ronnie’s main caregiver, giving him the understanding she would give her “naughty” sons when they were growing up, recalling she always “melted” after they said “sorry.”
“Ronnie is now my child, who I will always forgive and love even more every day,” she wrote. “I know it is only my love and the love of the family that sustain Ronnie these days. He is now in a journey and he needs a helping hand. And that hand is mine.” *
(You may e-mail me at [email protected]. Follow me on Instagram @joanneraeramirez.)
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