Gelli de Belen on being away from her sons: 'Napakahirap!'
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Gelli de Belen admitted that it's never gonna be easy for her and her husband, Ariel Rivera, to be away from their sons: Joaquin, 24; and Julio, 23.
“Napakahirap. It's very hard,” said Gelli when asked about their family's current setup during the press conference of the movie Roadtrip held recently.
The celebrity mom continued, “Parang you just learn to live with it. Pero every time we pick them up at the airport or we arrive in Canada, napakasaya. Over the moon sa happiness, talagang nakatuon ang pansin ko sa kanila. Pero it's heartbreaking when we have to say goodbye.
“It's really hard. Buti na lang merong tawag-tawag, may video call. Yun, nakakatulong.
“Pero ang hirap kasi hindi mo talaga nakikita ang mga pinagdadaanan nila araw-araw. [Wala ako roon] para to physically take care of them. Although they are with their lola, their cousins, and Ariel's siblings. Pero siyempre, iba kapag nandoon kami.”
Joaquin and Julio have been based in Canada since they decided to finish their college there.
Gelli recalled, “Noong una, itinapat lang ni Ariel yung topic na in the future they can study there. We were actually considering moving there. Pero naisip namin, 'Teka muna, okay naman ang trabaho natin dito. Bakit tayo lilipat doon? Paano tayo kikita doon nang katulad sa atin dito?' Pack up na sana yun.
“Kaya lang yung mga bata parang were really set to study there after high school. So, sabi namin, 'Sige, kung yun ang gusto n'yo, e, di… We have to give you wings so you can fly. And if this is what you want, we will try to make it happen.”
While it's hard for them as parents, Gelli is happy about how the situation helped her sons to become more mature and independent.
“Kapag nakikita ko ngayon kung papaano sila nag-mature, paano sila naging independent, na alam ko kung siguro dito sila nakatira hindi siguro ganun ka-mature at ka-independent. Doon lang naiibsan yung lungkot na wala sila, but it's actually really hard,” she ended.
SEE HOW GELLI AND ARIEL MAKE THEIR LONG-DISTANCE FAMILY WORK IN THIS GALLERY:
