Wednesday, January 1, 2014
As a high school friend of Bela's stepdaughter, Susie, and a former neighbor of his son Tom's, I remember Bela quite well over the years. I recall how devoted Barb and Bela were to one another. When I first met Barb she had a little button on her purse that read "I love Bela."
Bela had a good sense of humor and was a great storyteller. Once he told me how he had to flee Communist Hungary in 1957 as a freedom fighter and how if he hadn't, he would have been killed. That put him as a hero in my mind. I thought very highly of him for the care and devotion he had for his children and stepchildren. Bela was welcoming to all guests in his house. Once when I was with him and his stepdaughter a woman cut him off in traffic and he sped right by her and flipped her the bird, which I found hilarious. It wasn't something I thought a parent would do, and there was some freedom and youthful spirit in that action that I admired. But it wasn't in an angry way that he did that, it was like he was having fun with life and everything life threw at him and even enjoying that experience. Of course, I will always remember his expression, "Ushta Bushta" in Hungarian, which I am still not sure what it meant, but I thought something like "Uff da" in Minnesotan.
I liked the way that Bela was so proud of being Hungarian, too! He made a really good Hungarian casserole one night that had some peppers, noodles, and cheese in it. I am still not remembering what it was, but it was good! Maybe it was the "real" goulash and not the American imitation?
I remember telling him once that since I was a Finn, we were sort of like Hungarians because our languages were in the same language family. He was having NONE of that. "I'll tell you this" he says. "You can kiss a Hungarians a** and then you can kiss a Finlander's a**, and don't tell me they taste the same. That was the end of that.
I wish I could attend Bela's visitation on Saturday, but I have to go up north to Grand Rapids for a friend's wedding. Barb, Susie, Sara and Tom, and your respective families, I'm thinking of all of you and I hope that Bela has a good send-off to heaven. I'm hoping that there's a little corner in heaven where all the Hungarians are hanging out and Bela is telling everyone good stories up there.
Hugs to you all,
Jennifer
