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Jenny Syquia looks back on her whirlwind marriage with ex-husband Gabby Concepcion and reflects on lessons she learned from love

Article (news)

Alyana De Guzman

Push Team

<p>Jenny Syquia looked back on her whirlwind marriage to actor and ex-husband Gabby Concepcion. In an interview with Karen Davila for her latest vlog, the jewelry designer and former actress-model spoke openly about the lessons she carried from it long after it ended. </p><p>Jenny and Gabby were married in June 1993 and later had their marriage annulled in 1996. They have a daughter, Cloie Helena. Before this, the actor was married to Megastar Sharon Cuneta and their marriage was annulled in 1993.  They also have one daughter, actress KC Concepcion.  </p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:500px;display:block" width="500"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17704252554081770425362864.png" style="width:500px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="500"/><span class="fr-inner">Photo courtesy: Metro Magazine</span></span></span></div><div><br/></div><p>According to Jenny, everything about their relationship moved fast from the moment they met. </p><p>“That happened so quickly. I don’t know if you remember the story, but that happened within 3 weeks. That was very quick.” </p><p>She recalled meeting Gabby three decades ago, just days after arriving in the Philippines. “We met through a family member. The family member’s father was an actor in a movie. And they said, ‘Do you want to go and see a movie being filmed?’ and I said ‘Sure that sounds fun.’ So, I went and I met him. That was like right when I got here [in the Philippines] within the first 3 days. That was really quickly.” </p><p>Within a week of settling in, Jenny found herself unexpectedly crossing paths with some of the biggest matinee idols at that time, including Richard Gomez whom she met at a polo club, and Aga Muhlach in Tagaytay doing a movie. Jenny clarified that there was no romantic pursuit from the others, except for Gabby. </p><p>“Something in fate was wanting me to have that as my path,” she described.  </p><p>“It was just Gabby that I got to talk to and actually got introduced to because of the family connection.” </p><div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-4" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DUX8KpdkmaX/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=768&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A4%2C%22os%22%3A1629087.2000000477%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="889" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-4" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe></div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><p>What followed, she said, was a whirlwind romance that even she did not expect. Laughing as she recalled how quickly everything unfolded, Jenny described how Gabby proposed.</p><p>“It was very whirlwind. We met, hit it off, got together with my cousins a few times and then he just proposed to me.” </p><p>She even paused during the interview to acknowledge that memory can be tricky after so many years, inviting Gabby half-jokingly to correct her if needed.  </p><p>“He asked me to marry him, and I hadn’t even kissed him at that point. It was like very kind of other worldly. Then we flew to Las Vegas and then we got married.” </p><p>Explaining why she said yes, Jenny spoke honestly about the pull of attraction and timing. </p><p>“You know this is a long time ago when we had this attraction to each other. That’s what happens,” she said, laughing. </p><p>Looking back now, she recognizes how differently she might approach love. </p><p>“If you ask me now, being in my late 50s, would I do that again? I hope that I [will] maybe handle it differently. But I think I was swept away and I guess he was too because he proposed and then we married and then we married again in a church here.” </p><p>Marriage to one of the country’s biggest stars at the time brought dramatic changes to her life, including stepping  into the spotlight and starring in several Filipino films. However, the intensity that defined the beginning of their relationship also played a role in their separation just three years later. Reflecting on why the marriage did not last, Jenny offered a measured and thoughtful explanation. </p><p>“Sometimes you know, there’s that phrase that [goes], ‘When you have a big fire, it burns out quickly.’ It wasn’t like the slow flame that maybe developed from friendship or knowing all these things,” she reflected. </p><p>“There was so much he didn&#x27;t know about me. There&#x27;s so much I didn&#x27;t know about him. When you get into the day to day, those differences come out. It wasn&#x27;t the lack of attraction. We had an incredible attraction to each other. I just think that we were fundamentally too different. Unfortunately, we should have for sure known each other more.” </p><p>She added that cultural differences also played a role, having been born and raised in the United States. </p><p>“There were too many clashes, unfortunately.” </p><div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-2" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DS-I69LkYYE/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=768&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A2%2C%22os%22%3A1604045.600000143%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="719" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-2" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe></div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><p>Jenny shared that she and Gabby did not co-parent their daughter and had not spoken for many years following their separation. Still, she emphasized that there was no bitterness. </p><p>“We&#x27;re not enemies. We&#x27;re not friends. We&#x27;re just you know our lives have gone in different directions.” </p><p>“But I&#x27;m happy that he&#x27;s actually sent some reach out messages to me which I&#x27;ve been open to receiving. Our paths haven&#x27;t crossed, but the messages have gotten to me. [It was] nice to get those messages and maybe one day our paths will cross. I&#x27;d welcome that because it was a very special time in my life, a magical time.” </p><p>Looking back, Jenny spoke with gratitude to all their experiences rather than regret. The biggest lesson she took from their whirlwind romance, she said, was the importance of giving time in getting to know each other. </p><p>“Gabby completely changed my whole life in more wonderful ways than bad ways. We didn&#x27;t have a great split, but the rest of the time with him was very beautiful. So, I&#x27;m happy that I have that.” </p><p>“It takes a while to get to know someone. I also think or hope that I&#x27;m a lot more mature now because you know I was just in my 20s and you&#x27;re not that grounded. I hope that I have learned that love and life [are] really a marathon; it&#x27;s not a sprint. I think I was in a big hurry to get someplace before and that just coincided with my time with Gabby.” </p><p>After the annulment of her marriage, Jenny married Filip Skarne in Sweden. They were together for 28 years before separating three years ago and eventually divorcing. The end of her second marriage which she believed would have been forever, she admitted, was another heartbreak.  </p><p>Now single at 58, Jenny said she leans on faith during moments of doubt, recalling advice from her friend, actress Ina Raymundo, to lift her struggles up to God. </p><p>“I truly believe that when God closes a door, he opens another.” </p><div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-0" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DJgnTfKABzt/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=768&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A1584231.100000143%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="847" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-0" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe></div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><p>Surrounded by her children and close friends, Jenny found strength to begin again. She continues to thrive creatively through her jewelry brand, The Road I’ve Traveled or TRIT, a name that mirrors her journey. As she moves forward, Jenny holds on to her mantra shaped by love, loss, and gratitude. </p><p>“Life is a marathon. It&#x27;s not it&#x27;s not a sprint and life is going to throw you curve balls and you just you have to roll with the punches. You really you have to pick yourself up and dust yourself off and you always have to have gratitude for what you have.” </p><p>“Want what you have. Appreciate what you already have instead of wanting things that you don&#x27;t have. Look at what&#x27;s around you and cherish that and give the love back that you&#x27;re getting. And then you&#x27;ll have it tenfold,” she maintained.  </p><p>Meanwhile, many years following the annulment of his second marriage, Gabby married Genevieve “Ginbee” Yatco Gonzales with whom he shares two daughters.  </p>

<p>At 58, jewelry designer and former actress-model Jenny Syquia reflects on love, loss, and gratitude as she revisits her whirlwind marriage to Gabby Concepcion.</p>

At 58, jewelry designer and former actress-model Jenny Syquia reflects on love, loss, and gratitude as she revisits her whirlwind marriage to Gabby Concepcion.