“Strong woman” does not even begin to describe Senator Cynthia Villar.

Up close, she looks as frail as most petite women do. Clad in hues of gray this day, she tells this writer that her “uniform of choice” for work days is just a skirt and blouse.

She is not fussy, it is immediately apparent. Her light blouse is silky in texture, with tiny elephants in the design, a misnomer just like the lady herself — a petite giant, she is.

Her check pencil skirt is crisp and to the point, just as how she never minces words.

A feminine touch are her pointy, low-wedge mules in black with some shiny beading, as well as the simple strand of pearls around her wrist, stacked with a recognizable Serpenti watch.

For all that has been said and written about her, Senator Villar gives off an air of nonchalance — or perhaps the better term would be “too busy to care.” Her mind, once she is engaged in conversation, just flows with information. Ask me, she says. She will always answer.

What makes you happy? I venture to ask.

“My grandchildren.” There is no hesitation, and a glimmer of a smile comes across her face.

She has three apos — one from son Mark (Emma Therese) and two from daughter Camille (Tristan and Cara). “I am grateful for every moment we spend together,” she once posted on Facebook. “My most memorable moments are spending time with my family, especially my apos…” she said in another post, tagging her children Mark and Camille, who are now also in government roles as she is.

Camille, married to Erwin Genuino, is a member of Congress. Former Department of Public Works and Highways Secretary Mark is married to Rep. Em Aglipay.

“Only one of my children is focused on the business with Manny,” she says, referring to her low-key third child.

For those who have only ever seen the senator in her lawmaker role, this glimpse into her family life can be surprising. Then again, after all, we already know about the love story between the University of the Philippines graduates Manny Villar and Cynthia — opposites in personality, to be sure, but certainly enduring. What could be the secret, one might wonder.

Space? Each person in the relationship is accomplished in their own merits. What they have built, both in fortune and reputation, however, comes from a shared goal, it seems.

And then she launches into a description of their farm school, which obviously also makes her happy.

The senator’s heart is close to the land. Her grandmother, she tells us, was able to send four children to school by peddling “ikmo” (betel leaf) and other crops. In fact, that business success guided her as a lawmaker to help our farmers earn profits with the simple elimination of middlemen.

Of course, this solution is not easy. Yet Senator Villar is adamant about making the lives of our farmers better, to let them see that farming can be profitable and, therefore, sustainable.

She talks about poverty alleviation, the environment, the sorry plight of farmers, flooding, the controversies on land conversion and so on without any dramatics. Her manner of speech is matter of fact. Not for her is embellishment. Her one-liners, however, draw much hilarity.

Sharp and witty, Senator Villar navigates a roundtable discussion with ease. She will give an answer, yes, but she will not give more than what is necessary. Her words sound like pronouncements. She studies everything — and she acts on her goals.

Often the conversation turned to perennial issues, and one glimpses the impatience of a highly intelligent mind. Never mind, it seems to say. I will do it now rather than wait for things to happen.

The persona that people are often shown is strict, exacting, unapologetic. But the stories she tells paint a paradox: the legacy of her father, the late Las Pinas Mayor Filemon Aguilar, the concern for Filipino farmers, her family.

Sen. Cynthia Villar, for all that has been said about her, goes about her business without too much fuss. She will work. She will think. She will act. She means business.