Little Vovo

My Vovo passed away this morning,  Wednesday, February 1, 2012. I have a hard time realizing that she is not someone on this earth, living and breathing. It has been a few years since I last saw her, but I always knew that she was still around.

I have so many memories of Vovo, dating back to when I was 2 or 3 and she would babysit me on Tuesdays. I would go to her house and play with Vovo and Grandpa every week. As a thank you I gave Vovo a teddy bear, which she named Tuesday in honor of our visits. She gave him back to me when I graduated from high school.

When I was eight I flew to visit Vovo and Grandpa while they were living in the Blake House, as caretakers for the home of  the president of UC Berkley. I remember the house was so grand and beautiful, but the best aspect were the huge lawns and the many trails to explore. I also loved the ice machine and the dumb waiter. It was so fun to put all mayspecial things in the "little elevator" and move it from floor to floor. Grandpa always had a glass dish full of almonds which I loved! The highlight of the trip was helping Vovo set up for a big fancy dinner. She let me fold napkins and set the table and I felt so important and useful.


 Also, we watched a blind man rob a bank, which doesn't happen everyday. Vovo took me for a ride on  BART and around town on the trolleys. It was so fun to be spoiled so much.

I was able to live near Vovo and Grandpa when I was very young, but not again until after Grandpa passed and Vovo moved to Utah. I feel so blessed to have had that time with her once I was old enough to appreciate it. Vovo didn't have a car while she was in Salt Lake (thank heaven! She was a crazy driver and I never knew if I would live through a trip to the grocery store with her!), which meant that she needed help getting her errands done. My mom generally went up once a week to run her around, but I liked to go sometimes too. Normally we just hit a few stores and the podiatrist, but once Carter and I got to take her to get her wig done. Vovo didn't like people to know that she had a wig, and especially didn't like to be seen without hers, so I was planning on waiting for her in the car, but she invited us in to the back room with her. At some point Carter ended up running around the shop with Vovo's wig on his head, laughing hysterically. Vovo loved it and was all got a good laugh watching my 2 year old with granny hair. I wish I had a camera!


Another photo-op I missed was at the Stadium of Fire in 2006. Vovo went with the family, but it was a long walk from the stadium to the car, so I gave her a ride on our scooter. She hopped on behind me and we buckled the helmet around her cute little face. I don't know that she had ever had that much fun! She loved the ride to the car, and I think we both wished it had been longer.

Vovo was probably my biggest fan, musically speaking. My viola talents are pretty average, but Vovo always loved to hear me play and she went to ever concert I had with the Utah Valley Symphony. Whenever she heard me play a solo she told me that she wanted me to play that at her funeral. Now it's planning time, and I think we're going to have to narrow it down a bit!

 Vovo had a special place in her heart for Carter. I'm not sure why they took so well to one another (I would have thought it would have been just the opposite), but they had a lot of fun together. I'm disappointed that Carter won't remember gathering golf balls with Vovo to roll down a yoga mat, or chasing one another around the circle in my parent's house. Their bond was sweet and special, and I'm glad that my clean, careful, soft-spoken Vovo could appreciate Carter in all his glory.

When I gave birth to Sammy, Vovo was living in Alpine, and asked if she could watch the birth, as she had never seen one before (all of her children were c-sections). I told her she was welcome to join the party, and I hope it wasn't too crazy for her! When he was born we decided to name him Isaac, but Vovo kept calling him Samuel. We laughed about it for a day, but then thought about it a little bit more, and decided that he really was a Samuel. She picked a perfect name for him. 

I miss her so much, but I know that Vovo is glad to move on. I'm sure her reunions today have been very sweet and that she will be busy teaching the gospel to her family for a long time to come.