This mom wore a suit instead of a gown to her son's wedding
Madge Lejano has spent 25 years helping brides look their best on their wedding day. But when it was her own son's turn to get married, the makeup artist and wedding industry veteran found herself taking on a different role: that of the mother of the groom.
For the occasion, Lejano chose to wear a suit instead of the traditional gown. The look caught people's attention after she shared wedding photos on Instagram.
“I wore different hats. So parang ako na rin yung mother and father,” she told PhilSTAR L!fe. “Kumbaga parang gusto kong patunayan na ako na rin yung naging tatay.”
Lejano had her first child at 18 and raised three children, eventually doing so on her own. She recalled how challenging it was to bring them up while figuring out how to provide for their needs, but said she made a conscious effort to enjoy the experience.
“It's very, very hard. Pero parang yung mindset naging ano na lang. Inenjoy ko na lang talaga sila,” she said.
Her eldest daughter wore a suit, too.
“Parang ang dating, we never needed someone to be a family," Lejano said.
“I’m proud to be a single mom. I raised good people,” she added. "I'm really, really proud of them talaga."
A different role on her son's wedding day
The wedding was especially meaningful for Lejano because she was not only the mother of the groom but also the makeup artist who prepared her daughter-in-law for the occasion.
Despite being in the wedding industry for 25 years, she admitted that this experience felt different.
“Marami na akong pinaganda. Pressured ako,” she said. “This is not my regular or ordinary client.”
Her daughter-in-law had simply told her, “Bahala ka na. I trust you.” Still, Lejano wanted everything to be perfect because she did not want to disappoint the newest member of her family.
“Pero happy ako. Sobrang happy ako sa work ko sa kanya,” she said.
The two had already grown close before the wedding, with her son including his now-bride in family outings even while they were dating.
Raising three children on her own
For Lejano, being a single mother meant learning to take all parental responsibilities.
“I'm a very hands-on mom. So ako nagtuturong mag-drive sa kanila lahat,” she said.
She also became the person her children called when their cars broke down or when they got into accidents. Lejano had to figure these out herself—from learning how to fix things around the house to changing a tire.
“Wala kang choice kundi gawin mo lahat 'pag single ka,” she said. “You have no option but to learn.”
She also had to balance being a working mother with being present for her children's activities. Financially, she recalled, raising three children and wanting to give them equal opportunities was difficult.
“It's hard 'pag nagbigay ka ng regalo na worth P5,000 dito, dapat P5,000 din siya, P5,000 din siya,” she said.
Despite the challenges, Lejano was grateful for the close relationship she built with her children, who are so comfortable with one another that they even have group chats with her friends.
One thing she hopes her children—and others with single mothers—understand is that parents want what is best for their children, even if they do not always express it in ways their kids appreciate.
“Lahat ng parents, they do what they think is best for their kids,” she said. “'Yun lang, maybe in a different way, in a different form.”
For mothers raising children on their own, Lejano acknowledged that every family's situation is different. “It's going to be hard. It's not easy talaga, pero sometimes it's brutal,” she said.
“If you have a good foundation with your kids, everything will be okay naman.”