In her previous interviews, Lucy Torres-Gomez has gladly said that she's content with her life as Richard Gomez's wife and mother to their eight-year-old unica hija Juliana.
She reiterated her view on motherhood during the press launch of her newest endorsement, Ascof Lagundi, held recently at Terraces at the 5th in Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center, Makati.
"My dream really was to become a mother, a wife, and I'm living that life already," Lucy told the media.
It's not surprising to hear this from Lucy, who led a simple, laid-back life before in Ormoc City, Leyte. That's why she believes her career in local show business is just a bonus to her successful life as a whole.
"Having a career naman on TV was never part of my plan. I can say that it just sort of landed on my lap. And my little career on TV is just like icing on the cake. It's just a bonus that I'm enjoying for what it is."
Lucy takes homemaking so seriously that she's willing to give up her showbiz career for her family.
"It's really a no-brainer question," said Lucy. "I never asked for this [showbiz career]. I don't sit with my manager every year to plan a career path. I'm just really cruising along and I'm enjoying it."
She added, "Like for example the dance show, when it happened, I took dancing lessons, but not with the intent of hosting a dance show one day. It is a bonus especially in light of the fact that I never thought I'd enjoyed being on TV."
JULIANA AS LITTLE LUCY
Lucy sees herself in Juliana, whom she describes as extremely shy.
"I really see a lot of myself in Juliana," said Lucy. "I was the exact same way, 'yong pagiging [extremely] shy niya. So, I really understand when she clings to me and when she says, 'I don't wanna go out and say 'Hi' to people,' because I was the exact same way."
Lucy and Richard don't pressure Juliana to be close to everyone.
The TV host explained, "We don't pressure her to be chikadora or to be Miss Friendship because I don't want to steal her youth and I don't want to steal her childhood. I want her to grow up as normal as possible. She sees us on TV, yes, but never has she really [thought] that people coming out on TV are better than those who don't."
But do they have ways so that Juliana would not be too shy in facing the public?
Lucy answered, "Well, I talk to her and tell her na, 'These are people, Juliana. And I know where you're coming from.' But that comes in with age, e, you cannot force it. It comes with time and it comes with age, she will come out of her shell."
When they do commercials, Lucy said that she makes special arrangements so that Juliana won't be too shy while doing their taping.
She said, "I try to always work with the same team because it makes life easier for me, it makes life easier for the production, and it puts her at ease. So, when we do ads, I use the same team, I request for the same makeup artist, the same assistant director, 'yong gamay na niya."
The celebrity mom also related that Juliana is somehow getting used to doing commercials with her and Richard.
"Not that she enjoys. When the camera is rolling and she's comfortable already. Yes, she enjoys especially if she's in the company of kids, she's like that. But there's still that anxiety every time we do an ad. But each time naman na we do an ad, I always ask her," said Lucy.
But she also said that Juliana is only timid when she's with other people she does not know personally. In fact, at home, she said, "She's a comic. She can mimic anyone, she can do Mr. Bean. She's really a funny little child and I just wish that more people knew that side of her kasi nakakatawa siya talaga. But, yun na nga, if she's in front of people she's met for the first time, she really goes back into her shell."
LUCY: A HANDS-ON MOM
Unlike other celebrities, Lucy does not really have a tight showbiz schedule. Right now, she only has three days of work and the rest of the week is for her family.
Lucy then has all the opportunity to be a hands-on mom to her daughter Juliana.
She said this is important because, "I don't wanna have regrets later on. I don't wanna be so busy that I wake up one day and find out that my daughter is already grown up. 'Where did the time go? Did she have enough memories with me?' I look back at my own childhood and I have a lot of memories of my mom playing with us and my dad really spending time with us."
And even if she becomes busy at work, she said that it's just a matter of prioritizing what's more important and what's not.
"Like I said, it's all about balance," explained Lucy. "I believe that you always make time for what you choose to have in your life. So, it's a matter of setting your priorities, learning to say 'No' when know that you're spreading yourself too thin. That was my problem before, I didn't know how to say 'No.' Parang 'Yes' lang ako nang 'Yes.' Then, I realized that I stressed myself for no reason at all."
She continued, "Ever since two years ago, I really had to process my mind, prepare my mind na by saying 'No.' It's nothing personal really, it just means cleaning up my schedule so that my life is more balanced. At the same time, I can spend more quality time with my family and the things that I chose to do."
In the end, Lucy shared that nothing can really prepare one for parenthood. "Nothing really prepares me for it. Experience is the best teacher. It's not easy being a mother," she said.
She did not agree with a reporter who said that she's close to becoming a perfect mother.
"I'm not challenged by the image that people have of me. I'm just basically... I am what I am and I live my life the way I see fit, based rin on how my mother and my father raised me and my siblings up. You know, we all have this treasure throve of memories that we open when we're faced with the same situation already."