I heard that Betty White had died and then I grabbed a stick of butter out of the fridge to let it soften. I know Ms. White's career was longer than one role, for example I loved her work on "Hot in Cleveland". But to me she is Rose. During the pandemic I rewatched the all available episodes of "Golden Girls", and the show had more fatphobia than I had remembered and well, it's stance on sexual assault was not modern. But the idea of three (and then four) women who found themselves widowed or divorced, who started as roommates and became friends, who believed in the transformative power of cheesecake, well that part is all there. I love media about romantic love. Love is incredibly fun to write, read about, and watch. But seeing this fictional example of creating a life after your romantic love has ended was equally as powerful.
I turned the butter into shortbread, because that was the dessert I had ingredients for, but I think she would have understood.
There are many remembrances, but these two captured the longevity and the wit.