Family
Tom Rodriguez finds healing and joy in fatherhood
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“Masarap, sobra.”
This is how Tom Rodriguez described how it feels to become a father to his son, Korben.
“Especially nga, ngayon sa stage nila, he's magsisix months na. Nung baby pa siya, kahit anong para patawanan, walang reaction. Tatawa siya kung kailan niya gusto. E ngayon, talagang nagba-bond na kami. Lalo pag nakikita niya si Gargan sa TV, sinasabi pa niya 'dada.'
“Masarap sa pakiramdam na he's one of my best friends,” Tom shared when GMANetwork.com interviewed him at the recent media conference of the Metro Manila Film Festival entry Unmarry.
For the first-time dad, fatherhood has greatly helped him strive to become a better person.
“It also did a lot of healing sa sarili ko,” Tom said.
“Kasi, when I was going through what I was going through before, my brother told me na, 'Think about it, what would you give as advice to your nephew?' Noong time na yun, sa pamangkin ko pa. 'Tapos sabi niya, 'You also need to give advice to your younger self, to heal your inner child.'”
According to the Sang'gre actor, it was important for him to move on from what he went through in the past so he could be a better parent to Korben.
He explained, “Ngayon, mas nagiging madali siya because I have my own child, and I don't wanna pass on generational baggage din. So, mas mindful ako ngayon kung ano yung gusto ko ituro sa kanya, gusto ko pinagdadaanan ko rin talaga.
“I wanna model the right way for him. I wanna set a lead by example.”
Because of this, Tom said he is now more careful with every decision he makes.
“So, laging nasa front, 'pag may pinagdadaanan ka, 'Lord, what can I learn from this situation? How can I teach this to him?' So, mas gusto ko yung ganoon. I learn with him.”
In the end, Tom left a message for fellow parents.
He said, “Feeling natin as parents, tayo lang yung natuturo. Pero we learn along with them. Kasi, yung mga lessons ituturo natin sa kanila kailangang pagdaanan din natin. And I feel like I'm growing even more as a person,” Tom concluded.
Meanwhile, check out Tom Rodriguez's family photo with Baby Korben and his partner:
