The mail isn’t always predictable. You send something with the intention of it arriving within a couple of days… but it never shows up at the recipient’s address at all.
Or, in the case of this story, you send a letter that turns up at your recipient’s home five years later.
Katrina Jones’ mom passed away in 2018. But in 2015, she had sent a birthday card to Katrina, which seemed to have got “lost in the post” forever.
That was, until Katrina, of Youngstown, Ohio, went to check the mail during her lunch break earlier this month – and received the surprise of a lifetime.
She discovered that her mom’s letter, which she didn’t even know existed, had finally made its way to her.
Speaking to WKB27 about the moment she realized what she was seeing was real, she said:
“The date stamp on the envelope, it says June 20, 2015. The return address is from my mother. Then I looked at the handwriting and I said that’s my mother’s handwriting. My mother passed away in 2018.”
The purple envelope is beautifully decorated with flowers and butterflies. While it looks a little old and worn, perhaps having been left in the grimy corner of a post box for all those years, the birthday card inside is perfectly preserved.
Along with the card is a Bible verse – Jeremiah 29:11, which reads, “For I know well the plans I have in mind for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare, not for woe!”
The letter ends: “Love you, mom”.
Katrina’s mom, Betty Ann (Barnes) Paul, was a motherly figure in her community. She had several of her own children, but her maternal instincts weren’t confined within her own household in any way.
According to her obituary, “she was so often consulted for her advice and wisdom which she so lovingly gave.”
The notice continued:
“She was a loving mother, grandmother, great grandmother, aunt and friend. Among other areas of interest, Betty enjoyed spending time with her family, watching Christian television and cooking.”
There’s something magical about being reunited with mail from the past – especially when it’s mail that never seemed destined to make it to your door.
Katrina feels that the surprise delivery can only be a special gift from God.
She said that she remembered asking her mom back in 2015 whether she had got her a birthday card, after not receiving anything in the post – but the two of them soon forgot all about it.
She added:
“Someone told me at work, it wasn’t meant for you to receive back then. It was meant for me to receive now.”
A birthday card from her beloved mom probably means more to Katrina now than it would have done 5 years ago. She can certainly appreciate it more than she ever would have done before.
Nobody could even guess where Katrina’s mom’s card had been for 5 years, and how it came to be delivered now.
It’s nothing short of a miracle that wherever the card was found, it was sent on its journey to Katrina’s home, rather than being trashed when whoever found it realized how old it was.
You can watch a heartwarming interview with Katrina, who speaks lovingly of her surprise letter, in the video below.
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