MANILA -- Veteran actress Cherie Gil recalled her separation from her children, following the end of her 20-year marriage, describing it as a "bitter" time in her life.
In an interview on "Showbiz Inside Report" aired Saturday, the 48-year-old actress looked back at her career beginning as a child actress who followed in the foot steps of her celebrity parents -- actors Eddie Mesa and Rosemarie Gil.
After a string of film and TV portrayals which spanned decades, Gil went on a 10-year hiatus from showbiz, explaining in her interview that it was motivated by what she then considered "the best thing" to happen in her life.
She met renowned Isreali violinist Rony Rogoff.
"I met Rony and I married Rony and I knew that that was the best thing that could happen to me at that time, and even up to this day," the veteran actress said.
"But it came to a point that there was something missing in me, and he knew it was that creative side that I already had known and honed since I was a child," she added, referring to her acting career.
By the time they separated in 2008, the couple had two children -- Bianca, who was 12 years old at the time, and Raphael, 10. Gil's eldest son, Jay, had also been living with the couple.
Although Gil and Rogoff's separation happened "amicably," what followed was a chapter of "bitterness" from being apart from her children with the musician.
While Gil resumed her career in the Philippines, Bianca and Raphael were based in Israel with their father. The same set-up stands today, and for Gil, it hasn't gotten easier.
"That's not easy (distance), and of course in the beginning, it was a lot of struggle with the bitterness that had happened at that time in my life. But I'm not there anymore," she said.
Gil, in earlier interviews, said she continues to be in touch with her two children with Rogoff. The veteran actress also shared it helps that she is in good terms with her former husband.
"We're really good friends. In fact, we're better friends," she said.
Five years since becoming single again, is Gil open to being in a relationship anew?
"Not that I'm closing the doors, but I've come to be at ease with being alone," she said.
