Natasha Reunites with her Mother Roslyn after 30 Years

There’s a beautiful word in French that doesn’t quite have an exact translation to English. It’s ‘retrouvailles’ and captures the joy of meeting someone again after a long separation. And for Natasha and Roslyn, it captures the beauty of their story.

Natasha, age 69, is a self-proclaimed hippie—but there’s so much more to her than the fact that she attended Woodstock as a starry-eyed 19-year-old. She is a unique, educated woman who is a retired social worker, vegetarian—and a daughter.

Unique is also a word to describe Natasha’s mother Roslyn, a feisty, creative, 92-year-old artist who has been unabashedly flaunting a bold streak of purple in her hair for the past two decades.

Natasha and Roslyn have navigated life’s realities, challenges, and disappointments, and both readily acknowledge that family dynamics can be complicated. Their relationship has been complex, and their differences led to the last 30 years spent estranged from each other.

But, recently, they realized they had something in common: Natasha and Roslyn share the same deep longing to reconnect and rebuild their relationship.

The tragedy of it all is that Roslyn can’t remember what had led them to a decades-long estrangement. Finally, she broke the silence and called her daughter on the phone. That small gesture led to a spark of reconnection, and the two have worked on rebuilding their relationship through long phone conversations over the course of the last two years.

“We are getting to know each other again,” Natasha explained. Through these talks, Natasha learned that her mother’s vision was declining. She realized that Roslyn needed her support— and that she wanted to be there for her.

“I want to see my mom to get closure and try to mend our relationship,” Natasha said. “I would like to give her a hug. For her to see me one last time before her vision is gone would mean everything to me.”

When Wish of a Lifetime heard Natasha and Roslyn’s story, we jumped at the opportunity to help them reunite. With the support of GHC Housing Partners, Natasha flew from Long Island to Charlotte, North Carolina, for a long overdue visit.

As a mother embraced her daughter for the first time in 30 years, it was an actual moment of retrouvailles. There are just some things that transcend words, and spending time together over the course of several days took their relationship to another level.

Natasha said it was “the most healing and loving week.” Simply by being in each other’s company, they began to learn how to be mother and daughter to each other again.

When it came time to say goodbye, both mom and daughter left smiling with tears in their eyes. And they parted full of gratitude and hope for the future.