Grandma Orietta’s lasagna is delicious, especially the next day, reheated. And then the cappelletti, the tagliatelle, the risotto with sausage: «Olivia and Ottavia always do an encore», admits the nightingale of Cavriago, one of the most loved interpreters of Italian pop music.
Orietta Berti, even if she regrets being a grandmother who is not very present, knows very well the tastes of her granddaughters, daughters of Otis, her second son, and Lia, “a very sweet girl”, she notes. “Little girls like cooked ham, but not raw ham,” he lists. «Olivia likes to read, she is tidy, thoughtful and precise, while Ottavia is a pest, she destroyed my beautiful Smurfs collection. It’s a small earthquake… but it looks just like me”, he confirms to Credere, on the occasion of 26 July, the liturgical memory of Saints Joachim and Anna, the date on which Pope Francis wanted to establish the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly.
Between vices and whims
Sparkling and energetic on TV, maternal and reassuring in everyday life, Orietta spends time with her granddaughters between trips and songs. “They know them all, even better than me,” he assures. “They especially love videos and, when they watch me on television, with heels and perfect make-up, they are proud of me but also surprised, because they are used to seeing me in tracksuits and slippers.” In short, at home the classic Emilian grandmother, on TV the multifaceted artist, protagonist of Italian pop music from the Sixties to today.
«I’m a slightly apprehensive grandmother, but I don’t spoil them», she confides again. «However, I have a little ritual: every time I visit a city for a concert, I bring a puppet back to the girls. I keep them all in my house, so when they come to visit me they can play with them.” Of course, work often keeps her away from home, but There are occasions when family comes first: «On Christmas Eve and Easter we are always together: my husband Osvaldo and I, my sons Omar and Otis, my daughter-in-law Lia, little Ottavia and Olivia. For me it is important to reunite the family in these moments, and it takes me back in time, to when I was little…”.
At the cinema with Roce
Orietta never knew her paternal grandparents. «I grew up with my two grandmothers, Carolina and Rosa, my father’s mother, called Roce because she was strong as a rock, she endured many sacrifices, raised three children alone. He lived at home with us and, every weekend, we went to the cinema, we saw all the films of the moment, even several times. He made me fried cream tortellini at Christmas and those filled with chestnuts at Carnival. Then Olga, my mother, and Odilla, my mother-in-law, helped me raise my children, I left them with them when my husband and I were out for concerts.” And she shares a regret: «When I was little, it wasn’t common to take photographs, so I don’t have portraits with them. Because of this, today I consider the photos with my granddaughters precious». To whom he tries to inculcate the values that he in turn learned from his grandmothers: «Unity, love and respect for the family, education and collaboration between them».
Orietta knows she is «a grandmother who is a little strange and different from the others, because I am often away. But when I’m at home, I go out of my way, I always prepare food, Ottavia and Olivia love cappelletti in broth and tagliatelle with ragù, my way. In short, I try not to let them lack affection and warmth, even though I cannot always guarantee my presence.”
The soundtrack of faith
From traditional Italian melodies to summer hits, Orietta Berti has spanned over sixty years of career, conquering even the youngest audiences thanks to collaborations with artists such as Fedez, Achille Lauro and Fabio Rovazzi.
From Fin che la Barca Va and Tipitipitì, up to Mille, Cabaret and Chi Ama, Gioca and the latest summer hit entitled Quadri Cuori Picche e Fiori, Orietta Berti’s soundtrack is however always faith: «It has been my life’s traveling companion. He supported me in the most difficult moments”, reveals the singer. «Today I pray for my family, my friends, for those who suffer. My nieces also pray, but more with their maternal grandparents, Carla and Davide, who live in Brescia.”
Grandparents’ Day was also established to combat the loneliness of the elderly and enhance the roots of society. «Unfortunately, today children forget their parents and grandchildren forget their grandparents but they don’t know what they are missing», says Orietta. “Because of this I invite young people to spend more time with their grandparents, because it’s worth itthey are part of you, they are your roots, they raised you with love. Don’t just send a little message, a phone call is enough to cheer up your heart.” After all, those who love call.
“I’m afraid of this society and what world we leave to our grandchildren,” adds Orietta. «I am happy that Olivia and Ottavia had the opportunity to live their faith, thanks to the example we try to set as a family. I wish them to grow and find their own path and I hope neither of them wants to become a singer, because it’s hard work. For now, fortunately, there is no such risk: the eldest wants to be a painter, the second wants to marry two classmates from kindergarten! I told him it couldn’t be done. But, ultimately, life… is a cabaret.”
