Coco Martin, Julia Montes on love, business and building a future together

June 2 ------ Coco Martin and Julia Montes would be the last ones to describe their relationship as perfect. But for the longtime reel and real-life couple, what has kept them together is something they both kept returning to during their recent endorsement launch: faith, respect, privacy and learning how to be true partners in life.

During their contract signing as Regasco brand ambassadors, Coco and Julia shared rare glimpses into their dynamics as partners and what makes them a “perfect match” on and off screen. “For me, siguro maganda po talaga yung may center kayo, which is God… Yung talagang sa kahit anong mangyari, ups and downs in life, yung nasa sentro mo si Lord. Yun yung pinaka-blessed ako kay Coco kasi ganun siya,” Julia said during a presscon.

She said Coco’s faith has helped strengthen their relationship, especially during challenging times. “Yung faith niya sobra talaga and nakatulong yun sa relationship namin because, of course, nobody is perfect. There’s no perfect relationship. Pero lahat ng mga pinagdadaanan, happy moments, ups and downs, parang lagi talagang siguradong matatag because meron kayong sentro,” Julia said.

Coco, for his part, said one of the reasons their relationship lasted this long was because they chose to keep it private despite years of public speculation. “Honestly, ‘di ba dati pa ’to eh, lagi na kaming pinag-uusapan na parang sila yata ay… or ganun, kasi talagang key namin (is) private yung relasyon namin. Alam naman natin sa show business, ‘di ba, ‘pag marami nang pumapasok and maraming nakikialam sa personal mong buhay, dun minsan nagkakaroon ng (problem),” the actor-director/producer said.

Coco further said that mutual respect and support also became important foundations of their relationship. “Yung pagmamahal kasi minsan pag bago kayo, parang bugso ng damdamin eh. But if you don’t have respect for each other, later on, it will fade,” he stressed. “Habang tumatagal nang tumatagal yung relationship namin, mas nagma-mature kami nang nagma-mature, mas naa-appreciate namin lalo ang isa’t isa. Naging pundasyon nun yung respeto tsaka yung magsusuportahan.”

Coco also described them as “makaluma,” saying they both grew up with their grandmothers and continue to “value” old-school Filipino ideals of respect, family and mutual support. “As partners, makaluma kami. Di ba yung parang dating sinasabi nila sa mga Pilipino yung, ito yung ideal, dapat ang pamilya ay nagtutulungan. Ang mag-asawa ang nagsusuportahan sa isa’t isa, which is yun yung nakikita ko talaga sa amin ngayon,” Coco said.

Source: philstar.com