PEP: Sheryl Cruz on her divorce: 'I could say that I was at my lowest point.'

Sheryl Cruz is happy to hear that her cousin Donna Cruz is slated to return to showbiz this year. Donna, the singer-actress who was well known during the '90s, will be part of GMA-7's upcoming show Daldalita starring Jillian Ward. Sheryl says about this development, "If she is returning to showbiz, I would gladly welcome her back. "We need a lot of good actors and triple threats kasi si Donna magaling umarte at magaling kumanta. "She lives in Cebu and she needs her privacy. She's closer sa [relatives on my] father's side; ako, I'm closer to my mother's side." PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal) talked to Sheryl at the presscon of GMA-7's latest Dramarama Sa Hapon offering, Ikaw Lang Ang Mamahalin, last Tuesday night, October 4, at the 17th floor of GMA Network Center. DIVORCE. Sheryl then opened up about her divorce from her husband of 12 years, Norman Bustos. "I need to focus on issues like my divorce," she says. "Everything has been settled since August 2010 but, of course, it will take some time for me to recover. "Hopefully, it's progressing not regressing." Sheryl and Norman tied the knot three times. First, in 1996 in civil rites held in Lake Tahoe, Nevada; the second was in a Catholic wedding in the Philippines the same year; and the last was one was in 1997 in a church in San Francisco, California. Asked about the reason for their divorce, Sheryl points out, "It's a whole lot of reasons. "People would presume it's because of a third party or it's a long-distance relationship, pero tanging mag-asawa lang ang makakaalam. "What's important is that Norman and I are civil when it comes to our daughter Ashley." How is their daughter dealing with this situation? "She's at that age when she would like to feel secure na alam niyang parehong magulang niya ay mahal siya. "I don't want her to think that financial matters would come first before her. "Mabait naman ang Diyos at hindi naman kami pinababayaan." LOWEST POINT IN HER LIFE. The actress admitted that the divorce proceedings took a heavy toll on her. "I could say that I was at my lowest point," says Sheryl. "There were times when I couldn't close my eyes because I thought I was having a bad dream or I was having a nightmare." Sheryl thought that her marriage would last a lifetime. "Typical Filipina [ako], kung sino ang iyong pinakasalan, yun ang makakasama mo habang buhay...till death do you part. "But sadly not everyone is successful at that. "But I'm very happy through it all, I stuck it out for more than 12 years. "I took it upon myself, it was my duty as a wife to try to do whatever it takes to keep the family [intact]. "I forgive myself for all my shortcomings and kung ano man ang hindi napagkasunduan on the part of Norman, tapos na rin 'yon. "I just want him to be happy and I want to move on and not regress." Is she ready to date or entertain suitors already? "Honestly, hindi pa. At hindi rin naman yun ang focus ko," she emphasized. "There are times when you actually regress but I like to keep on moving forward. "Once in a while, I would reminisce but I don't want to keep myself stuck in the past because that will only mean a longer healing time or a longer time for me to process that it's over. "I have to be true to myself and be kind to myself and recognize that I'm divorced and life goes on. "I have a responsibility and that is my daughter [Ashley]. "I want to be healthy so I can be able to take care of her." The single mother vows, "Kung nag-fail man ako sa relationship ko kung nag-asawa ako, pinagdadasal ko talaga na hindi naman ako matatalo sa pagiging magulang o pagiging nanay. "I'm very happy because I have a very, very good daughter. She's very understanding, intelligent and sensitive. "She knows that I'm trying my best. She gives me inspiration and appreciation." She then described her daughter as her "girl friend" because of their closeness. "Times flies so fast. Now she's ten years old, before she was just 7 ½ lbs and 19 ½ inches, and now she's already up to my shoulders. And she can talk to me, she can communicate with me. "I like to value all the seconds that we are together." With regard to their daughter's education, Norman shoulders the expenses for Ashley's tuition fee. IKAW LANG ANG MAMAHALIN. In GMA-7's remake of Ikaw Lang Ang Mamahalin, Sheryl will play Amara Luna, the manipulative sister of Ferdinand (portrayed by Gardo Versoza). The actress is thankful to the management of the Kapuso Network for giving her projects that keep her busy. "This [project] is keeping me busy because when you're not doing anything, that's the time when a lot of memories come back to you and you're prone to remember sad memories. "Kahit papaano, it enhanced me as a person and as an actress," says Sheryl. - Jocelyn Dimaculangan, PEP