It’s a holiday today.  The kids and I went with my husband on a road trip to San Fernando, Pampanga.  We had lunch at the French Baker at SM Pampanga and enjoyed frozen yoghurt for dessert at Tutti Frutti.  Then, we crossed over the Olongapo-Gapan Road to Robinsons Starmills where it was quieter.

     We went on the Internet at an internet shop on the second floor and after an hour, we decided to have a snack at the food court.  We were waiting for my husband to text us that he was leaving the office and was coming over to pick us up from Robinsons.  We were supposed to meet up at the grocery store.

     When his text message came, I noticed a group of tall burly men rearranging tables and chairs in the middle of the food court.  I thought a group of people would be having a conference or a working dinner or something.  So we began to walk toward the escalator to go down to the grocery store.  We were met by the same group of tall burly men.  This time, they had walkie-talkies.  In the middle of this group of tall burly men was a diminutive woman who looked so familiar.

“That’s Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.” I said.
“The president?” asked my daughter Fran.
“Former president,” corrected her brother, Paolo.
“Now congresswoman from Pampanga.” I added.
“Let’s go back.  I’ve never seen a president before.” Paolo said and off he ran after Gloria.

     Not wanting to lose my boy in the crowd because a crown had begun to form.  I grabbed Fran by the wrist and pulled her along with me. “What?  Why are we going back there?  What are we supposed to do, bow before her?”  I chuckled. My daughter’s question was so apt: as Gloria was walking along, she was slightly bowing at the people around her who were staring at her. She was like a queen acknowledging her subjects.

     When she got to the food court, one of the burly men pulled her chair for her and before she sat, she looked around at the people, smiled and did another small bow and sat.  She then began mixing her halo-halo with small stabbing movements of her spoon.

     Awestruck at seeing someone famous, I asked Paolo “You want to get your picture taken with her?”
  
    “A picture with the tyrant? No way!”

     We stood there in silence, watching her mix her halo-halo.  And then Fran asked “Which one is Gloria?” pointing to the three ladies sitting there before us.  All of them had about the same shoulder length hair and they were all wearing white blouses with three-fourths-sleeves.  “Ma, which one is Gloria – the hag in the middle?”

     I had to run out of there.  I lost it completely and was doubled over with laughter much to my daughter’s consternation. Gloria was once hated.  Maybe she still is.  Some stand in awe of her, not because of who she is but of who she once was.  To my daughter, she was just the “hag in the middle.”