Doting mom-of-two Jennica Garcia answered some of the toughest questions about being a solo parent and expressed appreciation for her mother Jean Garcia in this episode of Kapamilya Chat.

Throughout the interview, the Dirty Linen star was very vocal about her goals to achieve financial freedom this 2023. Asked why she doesn’t shy away from talking about her struggles, especially in her finances, she replied, “Una sa lahat, hindi ko kasi kinaaawaan ‘yung sarili ko.”

“Kasi alam ko na mayaman ako sa ibang bagay. Mayaman ako sa pagmamahal ng magulang, mahal ako ng mga kapatid ko, nandiyan ‘yung mga pinsan ko. Kaya alam ko na kahit sinong mawala sa buhay ko, meron akong solidong masasandalan,”

Admittedly, she reads comments telling her to ask financial support from her mom, actress Jean Garcia. While there’s nothing wrong with asking for help, Jennica would rather be independently responsible for her own life and two kids. “Kasi hindi naman responsibilidad ng Nanay ko na sa edad ko na ‘to, kailangan ko pa rin siya palagi lalo na sa larangan ng pera.”

“Sa edad ko ngayon, 33 na ako, dapat marunong na ako tumayo sa sarili kong paa lalong-lalo na may dalawang nakaasa sa akin.” She added, “Ang gusto ko is dumating ako sa financial freedom to the point na ‘pag sinabi ng Nanay ko, ‘Anak, parang gusto ko na magpahinga,’ kaya ko siyang i-sustain. It’s not the other way around.”

They say that being a mom makes you appreciate your own. This sounds true for Jennica, who wishes to repay her mother’s sacrifices, knowing it must be hard for Jean to raise a daughter at 19. Apparently, she was speaking from a place of guilt, “I feel it in my heart that I took away my mom’s teenage years. I feel that I took so much from her.”

“’Pag iniisip ko na what I am going through right now in my life is something that my mom had to go through at 19, mamahalin mo nang sobra ‘yung Nanay mo, eh. Maiintindihan mo. Ito pala, ganito pala ‘yung pinagdaanan mo.” Looking back, she’s glad that she grew up with a good relationship with her mom. It helped that she isn’t confrontational. When overwhelmed with strong emotions and pain, she’d rather isolate herself and only talk to her trusted people once she’s feeling better.

While being a solo parent is looked upon as a lonesome road to be in, Jennica is proof that it shouldn’t be that way. If anything, she’s even grateful that these challenges came just at the right time when she’s emotionally mature enough to handle them. She’s also aware that other people have it worse, thus there’s no need to dwell on self-pity.

“Hindi ako naaawa ako sa sarili ko. Ando’n ako sa, nagpapasalamat pa ako sa Diyos na kung saan man ako ngayon naranasan ko siya na 33 na ako… Naranasan ko siya na may kakayahan na akong mag-discern ng tama sa mali. May kakayahan na akong magtrabaho. Pinagpapasalamat ko sa Diyos na kumpleto ‘yung katawan ko, meron akong kamay, meron akong paa. So, pwede ako. I can do all kinds of work. Hindi malilimitahan kung ano’ng kaya kong gawin, with the help of the Lord.”

When talking about her kids Mori and Alexis, she can’t help but turn a bit emotional but continue to appear collected. There were moments when she would break down in front of her children. What she did was use the situation to broaden her kids, especially Mori’s knowledge about handling pain and emotions.

She would tell Mori, “Sa bawat pag-iyak natin, gumagaan ‘yung pakiramdam mo. So, umiiyak si Nanay para pagkatapos nito, gagaan ‘yung loob ko.” In Jennica’s household, she makes sure emotions are validated. Instead of asking her children to stop crying, she lets them process their emotions and explain how to handle them better next time.

“Ang importyante, alam ng anak ko na andu’n ako habang naiinis siya at pagkatapos nu’n, nandito pa rin ako. Ayaw ko kasing mag-instill sa anak ko na mahal lang kita ‘pag tama behavior mo.” She added, “Bago ko i-point ‘yung maling action, dito muna tayo sa ano’ng nafe-feel mo. I-welcome natin ‘yan. Wala tayong emotion na hindi iwe-welcome dito sa bahay.”

Check out this episode of Kapamilya Chat!