Loren is quite the enigma. One minute she’s the tough boss, the next minute she’s the soft-hearted mother who looks out for helpless street children. (Photo by PINGGOT ZULUETA)

She was abandoned by her rumored running mate in the 2010 presidential elections in a drastic move that caught her off-guard, and for once, probably, she was left vulnerable. People have speculated on her reaction and even pondered about her true feelings. On television, the usually cool demeanor of Senator Loren Legarda seemed to crack a bit. But days after the initial blow, she recovered.

The piercing eyes and the confident aura she projects are back. And looking at Senator Loren, it’s hard to imagine how one so tough could ever be hurt. She’s so in control of herself and of her emotions that people sometimes forget that the formidable senator is first and foremost a woman – one who has endured her own share of heartbreaks and tears.

But once upon a time, Senator Loren was a young girl who used to hang out with her friends at Gotesco Mall and cried whenever her “bully” cousins would tease her.

But the woman behind the strong persona that is Senator Loren still can’t help but giggle at the thought of dating George Clooney.

Girl Baha

“I wasn’t born in extreme poverty nor was I born into wealth. I was born middle-class,” shares Loren. “My father was a car salesman and my mother was a bank secretary. My father eventually became a businessman while my mom became a bank executive.”

Loren grew up in a small bungalow in Malabon so she was pretty used to floods. “Lumulusong pa  ako dati  sa baha!” she laughingly recalls.

Their compound in Malabon was also filled with trees so the young girl grew up loving Mother Nature. “I’m a simple person, believe it or not!” she expresses. One of her fondest childhood memories was to eat out with her parents. A particular favorite of hers was a restaurant in Malabon called Fish Fun.

“The restaurant has a fish pond, and huhuli ka ng isda then kakainin mo yung nahuli mong isda,” she explains. “There’s also this restaurant in Valenzuela City called Jack’s Restaurant. I would order a hamburger there and happy na ako.”

Loren started working as a Close-Up model when she was 15 years old. When she reached 18, she was already financially independent. The senator’s industriousness could be attributed to her relentless drive for Loren always strove to be the best in all her endeavors.

“I was not the brightest in my family so I had to struggle,” she professes. “I started gaining medals only when I was in Grade 4. My cousin was the gold-medalist. Nakita ko kasi mas matalino mga pinsan ko, eh gusto ko din maging katulad nila. So doon na ako nagsumikap.”

Despite her achievements, Loren still felt inferior compared to her cousins. “I had cousins who were prettier, who were better-off, and who were gold-medalists. I didn’t find myself fantastic at all,” she confesses. “I was a very insecure child. I had my pains, struggles, fears, and anxieties. In short, I’m no Darna.”

From Model to Journalist

Eventually though, Loren grew up to become a journalist, following her grandfather Joe Castro Bautista’s footsteps. “It was the most natural decision,” she says. “I always had an ear for rumor and eye for detail.”

Her lolo was a great influence in her life. “He was very hard-working; he was also very honest, and his integrity was really something to be proud about.”

But the pretty girl with an intense passion for the environment was made for bigger things than journalism. In 1998, she ran for a Senate seat under the Lakas party. Strangely enough, Loren has a love-hate affair with politics. “I actually don’t like politics, believe it or not,” she explains. “But I like the work that comes with it. Politics is a necessary platform for me to accomplish the things I want to do.”

She believes that her role as a public servant is a means to promote her causes, which are mainly focused on promoting arts and culture, rallying the rights of the indigenous people, and preserving the environment. She even founded the Luntiang Pilipinas to encourage the public to take part in the conservation of Mother Nature. Because of Luntiang Pilipinas, there have been over two million trees planted all over the country.

“There’s so much I want to do for the world,” she stresses. “I want to infect people with my passion.” But if she was not involved with politics, Loren would love nothing more than to travel to exotic places with her sons. She relishes her peace and quiet but her busy schedule keeps her from even watching a DVD she bought years back — Jack Nicholson’s “As Good As It Gets.”

On Art, Love, and Charity

“What most people don’t know about me is my humanitarian nature. I’m a compassionate person,” says Loren. She even relates how she was never truly content during the Christmas season despite the many festivities. “I was never completely happy as a child, especially during Christmas. I would see the squatters along the way and I would question the social inequity or the injustice.”

“Coming from Malabon, I had a comfortable home and was going to a convent school despite our middle-class background,” she continues. “I always felt I wanted to do something about it.”

So Loren would give to their family’s workers whenever she could, and she even started what she calls the “alaga brigade.” The senator would pick up street-children and put them through school. With so many things already up her sleeve, it’s interesting to note that Loren also has an artistic streak. She used to paint, and her favorite subjects are trees, mountains, and seascapes.

She also has a huge fabric collection sourced from exotic countries and the indigenous tribes in the Philippines. “I always go to the weaving centers, whether in Cotabato, Ilocos Norte, or Maguindanao,” she shares. “When I was in Laos, I even took a boat in the Mekong River just to look at the women weaving.”

Other than her paintings and fabric collection, Loren also has numerous essays and poetry which she jotted down in a Cattleya notebook. Passion and romance are two things that dominate her heart. She had her first boyfriend when she was 18, and her voice is giddy as she recalls the Hallmark books she received as a teenager.

“Kilig na kilig ako noon!” she gushes. Loren would also keep the perfumed handkerchiefs, empty beer bottles, and keychains her dates would use. “I had a cabinet and at the topmost part of it was where my love letters and fan mail were.”

When asked if she still believes in true love, Loren answers, “Of course! Until the day I die!” She names George Clooney and Harrison Ford as her ultimate crushes and candidly asks her assistant if she’s already following both on Twitter.

The senator people see on television, newspapers, and magazine might look formidable, but deep inside she’s still the young girl from Malabon who would cry whenever her cousins would tease her “walang sala” (as regards to her copying Manansala’s paintings).

“I’m used to being heckled and bullied so I’m tough,” admits the senator. But that doesn’t mean she’s invincible. After all, if you take away Darna’s headpiece and bato, she’ll be just a girl like everybody else.