Anthony and Maricel Laxa Pangilinan first met in UP Diliman's Melchor Hall, and Anthony donned his shining armor to save Maricel from a hustling crowd. (Photo by PINGGOT ZULUETA)

It was a scorching hot day in the University of the Philippines (Diliman), and a crowd has formed in Melchor Hall. Art students were busy drawing while their model sat patiently in a corner, looking quite flustered. Anthony Pangilinan casually passed by, but a glance at the model made him stop on his tracks. Just one look at Maricel Laxa and he was smitten. With so many people surrounding her, she appeared quite uncomfortable, so he went to offer her refreshment. “I thought she must be harassed and was probably being harassed so I had to check if she was okay,” he simply explains.

Luckily, Maricel’s mother was present at the time, so she was able to brief Anthony on what her daughter really wants. Instead of getting her a soda, Maricel’s mother suggested Anthony to buy taho. Despite his gallant intentions, however, Anthony wasn’t prepared. “When I got the taho and was about to pay for it, I realized I didn’t have money. So her mom ended up paying for the taho, which costs around Php 5.00 back then. But I got to present it to her.”

Anthony’s thoughtful gesture was well-received by Maricel. “I thought he was a nice guy. Ang ganda ng dating niya, and may impact siya kaagad sa akin kasi binigyan niya ako ng taho. It was my favorite,” she relates.

But it was only during a chance encounter at a disco that Anthony and Maricel really became friends. “We bumped into each other, and I saw that she was being harassed again,” Anthony recalls.

“I was trying to recover from a break-up at a disco, so I was obviously not okay,” explains Maricel. “When he looked at me, he saw a damsel in distress. But when I saw him I thought, ‘Here’s my next victim!’”

Anthony and Maricel danced together that night and he finally got the courage to ask for her number. After that evening, Anthony also asked Maricel to help him with his brother Kiko Pangilinan’s campaign.

“We saw a lot of each other during the campaign, and when the campaign was finished and we were still seeing each other, we knew that there was something more than friendship between us,” Anthony shares.

They dated exclusively for eight months, after which the couple decided to seriously think about the direction of their relationship. “We didn’t see each other for a period of time just to pray, assess, and think about things. We wanted to be sure that if we were to go further, it was because we really were serious about each other and we wanted a permanent relationship,” says Anthony.

It must have been love working on their heartstrings because both of them came back from the hiatus with a common answer: They wanted a serious relationship, one with marriage in their future.

Shortly after this agreement, Anthony decided to pop the big question. The couple was enjoying ice cream at Manila Peninsula when Maricel got a pleasant surprise. “We were already finished eating the ice cream and I got up but he told me to wait. He then pulled out three boxes and that was when I went, ‘Oh my gosh,’” she narrates. Anthony asked her to open each one, and inside one of the three boxes presented to her, Maricel found a ring.

There was also a card, and written there was: “Will you marry me? Not next year, but this year.” Maricel was so happy, there was no question what her answer would be. She said yes to Anthony and they got married in December of 1993 in San Mateo, Rizal.

Now 17 years married, Anthony and Maricel are the proud parents of four children: Ella, Donna, Hannah, and Benjamin. “Ella’s the fashionista, Donnie is the math wizard and magician, Hannah’s the gymnast, and Benjamin is the boss because he has a strong personality,” Anthony shares.

“Parenting is a huge responsibility, and it’s also a huge privilege just to be a part of their lives,” adds Maricel. And the couple loves it when their children take an active part in keeping the fire aglow in their marriage.

Whenever the kids see their parents arguing with each other, they would leave notes or tell their parents: “We know you are not in agreement. Please look at each other in the eye and say sorry.”

“We start laughing and we do apologize after. We explain to them that sometimes we do not agree but it’s not reason for us not to apologize,” says Maricel with a smile. “It’s one thing I appreciate about our family. We don’t have to be okay all the time.”
Despite their number of years together, Anthony and Maricel still go on weekly dates. “We have this thing which we’ve been doing for more than 10 years, and that is we go out on a date every Friday whether we like each other or not,” reveals Maricel.

Anthony continues, “But what’s really great about our relationship is that God’s the third party in our marriage. Without Him, our marriage would be headed nowhere.”

On their Relationship

He said: I’m a criteria-based decision maker, and I thought: Are we compatible? Do we have a vision that we share? Do my parents feel good about her? Everything checked out. Of course, there was some romance in our relationship and I really did pray about it.

She said: ‘Pag maraming ayaw, or ‘pag maraming problema ang relationship, it’s not right. But with us, everything was in order. We share common values and everybody approved of our relationship.

On Parenting

He said: Our four kids are a major responsibility and being a parent is both a joy and a hassle. We’re both spoilers and disciplinarians to our kids. I do more sports with my kids such as biking, swimming, and running.

She said: I’m more traditional with my approach to our children. There has to be a structure and a certain strictness implemented. My kids know that if they want a definite yes answer to what they want, they go to daddy. Because if they come to me first, they know I’ll say no. So now we have an agreement: He has to ask the kids what mommy said first before he gives an answer.

On Family Bonding

He said: We have ‘alone days’ with our children, sometimes we talk and sometimes we spend time doing nothing together.

She said:  What I’ve learned is that quality time is spending time with the person according to what the person loves doing.