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Francis M. shares with us the secret of his unconventional ways of parenting.
In the first part of his revelations about fatherhood , Francis Magalona gave us a glimpse of his life as a parent to eight amazing children. Now, he shares with us the secret of his unconventional ways of parenting. Forty-year-old veteran artist and entertainer Francis Magalona, better known as Kiko, admits that parenting is truly a life-long learning process. Despite this, he manages to raise his children with values concentrating on respect and independence. A self-confessed bad boy of sorts, Kiko admits that his personal experiences have given him a different view on how to raise his own kids: “I reversed the psychology. I’m not mahigpit with them. I let them fight their own battles and I don’t snoop [around].” Aside from shying away from conventional parenting, Kiko also is very proud that he has taught his children to be independent. “When they were young, I didn’t [automatically give them] baon and money. Right now, they’re very good with money, they’re very masinop, [and] they’re very independent. They’re people with simple joys,” he says proudly. Actually, Kiko’s entire family finds enjoyment in their love for the simple things in life. “The good thing is they like what I like, and they are all into photography. They like movies, DVDs, and they like eating out. That’s the joy we have as a family. We like to review restaurants,” he says jokingly. The importance of spending quality time with his kids is something Kiko learned from his own childhood, growing up in the revered Magalona clan: “I came from a big family [and] it’s hard to compete with siblings. [For example] I would really be happy if I had the whole day with my dad and mom.” Not wanting his children to go through the same thing, Kiko says that he makes every effort to be a hands-on father, especially with his younger children: “I help them with their homework, I draw for Elmo. I also give them incentives. I reward them…and I take away their liberties when they fail.” Another thing that Kiko is proud of is that he never believed in spanking. “I don’t believe in violence. I’m a peaceful guy but I punish them [and] ground them,” he says. Kiko even reveals some tidbits about how happy his kids are with his way of parenting. According to him, Maxene actually has difficulty crying: “She’s an actress and she has a hard time crying. She’d say, ‘I had a happy childhood [so] I can’t cry eh.’” Parenting may be the hardest job in the world, but for Kiko, as long as you love this job and commit to it, the rewards will be more than enough. - Text by Alula Love M. Dela Cruz. Photos by Mitch S. Mauricio. Catch Francis M. regularly on Eat Bulaga! Feel the fun with Francis M. by texting FRANCISM or FRANCIS to 4627! (Each Fanatxt message costs P2.50 for GLOBE, SMART, and TALK 'N TEXT, while it costs P2.00 for SUN subscribers.)