The passing of Betty White is hitting all of us pretty hard this afternoon. White has been a beautiful presence in our lives for decades and the world is nowhere near as sunny without her light in it.
Friends, fans, and loved ones are sharing messages of support as well as memories of White’s sweet spirit on social media in a nod to her positivity, and they’re simultaneously breaking and warming hearts around the globe.
One fan and friend of White’s shared a story about the first time he met her and her husband, Allen Ludden, at a Los Angeles show in 1974. Steve Martin told his followers that he was the opening act for Linda Ronstadt, and when he saw White and her husband before the show, he had to go up and say hello.
He was taken aback when White and her husband shared that they were there to see him after he’d assumed that they were there to see Ronstadt.
The story is one that Martin will undoubtedly look back on and smile about for the rest of his life, but fans are also wondering if he had some type of premonition due to the timing of the tweet. Martin didn’t share the encounter after the world had learned of her passing, after all ⏤ he shared it before.
Of course, his primary intention was to look back on a moment shared with a friend, but fans believe that Martin may have experienced the precognition for a reason, that maybe deep down he knew that White was about to leave us. They’ve taken to Twitter to express their gratitude for Martin’s sharing of the sweet memory, noting that White was correct ⏤ he is very funny. The timing of his recollection is certainly heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time.
Fans are treasuring Martin’s story along with many others being shared about White on this sad day. As her legion of fans unites to mourn her passing and honor her legacy, we remember and acknowledge that Betty White was indeed a friend to us all.