Adulting is tricky—some days it feels like you’ve got it together, the next you’re just winging it. That’s why Louise Abuel and Bianca De Vera’s thoughts on everything from love to life in this Kapamilya Chat episode will sure resonate, especially on those off days when you need a little nudge that it’s totally fine to set your own boundaries on what’s okay and what’s not because that’s really how you figure your way through.
In the "It’s Okay or It’s Not Okay" Challenge, named after the series they currently star in, "It's Okay To Not Be Okay," they were given different scenarios and had to say whether each one was a go or a no. It sounds simple but the best part was hearing how they explained their choices.
One scenario threw in the question of working just to survive rather than out of passion. For Louise, it’s neither okay nor not okay, but more of a tough reality. You can tell his thoughts came from a place of empathy when he pointed out that many people don’t always have the privilege of choosing their careers. What makes him and Bianca fortunate, he reflected, is that their passion has doubled as their source of income. “Pero ‘yung ibang tao talaga hindi nila choice ‘yung nangyari sa kanila. So hindi ko masabing it’s okay, pero sana okay sa inyo ‘yung ginagawa n’yo. I’m hoping na lahat ng tao gano’n ‘yong maranasan nila, na ginagawa nila ‘yung passion nila and at the same time they’re making a living,” he shared.
Another situation asked whether it’s okay not to talk about your problems just because you don’t want to be treated differently. Both gave such mature takes, agreeing that yes, it’s perfectly fine. Bianca explained that it always depends on your own pacing, “Nasa sa’yo kung kailan mo gusto mag-share o hindi. Nasa sa’yo din kung saan ka komportable.” Louise added that sometimes we already know within ourselves which problems we can manage alone, but this doesn’t mean we don’t need a support system. For him, support can be as simple as presence, “Hindi mo kailangan magsabi ng kahit na anong problema sa kanila or anything, pero just being around with them, okay na ’yun.”
Another scenario tackled the idea of forgiving but not forgetting, which made Louise smile and drop, “Hindi ba ganu’n naman talaga dapat? Forgive but never forget?” Bianca backed him up and shared that she’s actually the type who forgives easily, joking, “Masyado tayong maganda para magtanim ng galit. Hello?!”
They also weighed in on becoming afraid of falling in love because of bad experiences in the past. Speaking with surprising wisdom, Louise called it neither okay nor not okay—“it’s normal.” He believes it's just a sign that you’ve learned from your mistakes, and eventually, those fears will fade once you meet the right person, “I guess ‘pag nasa tamang tao ka at ’yung mga red flags ay wala doon sa tao na ’yun, eh ’di go." Bianca then pointed out that healing doesn’t happen overnight, “Kapag ang isang tao nasugatan nang sobra at malalim ang sugat, hindi naman ’yan basta-basta naghe-heal and it will really take time.” For her, there’s nothing wrong with taking it slow.
They gave another solid point when asked about falling in love with someone just because they remind you of your first love, to which Louise reacted, “Siguro kung nakikita mo ’yung ibang tao with that person, medyo mali ’yun. Kapag tinitingnan mo siya tapos iba ’yung naalala mo, mali ’yun. Dapat kapag tiningnan mo siya, focused ka lang sa kanya.” As he put it, “Hard pass.” Bianca laughed and echoed with conviction, “It’s not okay!”
Catch Louise and Bianca as Kai and Bella in “It’s Okay To Not Be Okay” on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live (KOL), A2Z, and TV5, weeknights at 8:45 PM. Watch it in advance on Netflix and iWant.