Rosa Pfennigwerth
Oma Betty
I was 23 years old when I first got to meet my Grandma, and it was love at first sight. “We bonded” she would say with the sweetest smile. Although I had to wait for so long to get to know her, she and her love has always been present in me and my brothers life, through her loving letters and the sweetest gifts, like knitted hats and little toys.
I still remember when I heard her voice for the very first time when I climbed up the stairs to her apartment on a beautiful morning in San Diego in 2009. I will never forget her happy smile, and that feeling hugging her - a person I’ve never met before - and it still felt so familiar like we’ve known each other forever. It was the most wonderful thing for me to spend some Grandma-Granddaughter time with her, playing Banana Grams, going grocery shopping or getting some prescriptions at the doctors office. I remember my Dad being worried that these kind of activities might not be fun enough for me, but these were exactly the things I wanted to do with her. Spending time with her was one of the most special things I experienced in my life. It was so obvious that we were relatives. She used to named us “us gals” - and we were. After a lifetime of not knowing - but still somehow missing her - I felt so surprised about the resemblance, and blessed at the same time. I admired her so much because I’ve never met a woman so wise, so funny, so loving and so cool at the same time. I loved listening to her stories about her stealing a car when she was a young girl, about her wonderful husbands Clarke and Joseph, and about all the family cats. I loved reading her poems and watching all the family pictures and videos, and I wish I could have done this over and over again.
She took me to so many beautiful places in San Diego like Point Loma and Balboa Park, where she told me the story of her proposal. One time she took me to a beautiful church on a hill to her choir group I think, she introduced me to many of her friends and I got to sing with her, which filled my heart with so much joy. And of course our great trip to Sea World, where when we asked a park guy named “Bob” for directions, she started a funny little flirt with him, and so he took us behind the scenes and we got to see the baby sharks! That was so much fun! So many things to learn from her! :)
We met again in 2010 and played more Banana Grams, a blessing! And then, for the third and last time in my life in 2016, when she got to meet my little daughter Josephine. She took her on a fun ride on her walker and gave her the sweetest little blanket, which is the bed for her favorite stuffed animals today. I’m glad that we had the chance to stay in touch via Facebook, and thank you Dad and Kevin for giving her my hugs many times. I felt her love even through the longest distance one can imagine for a girl who misses her family. I will never get over not seeing her again, and I will love and miss her forever. I’m so proud of having the coolest Grandma in Heaven, and I know she is having a blast maybe riding her motorcycle over the clouds. Love always!
