A Brother’s Gift: The Miracle of a Jersey on Thanksgiving

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hi everyone, welcome to this special edition of Three Cups in a Dash of Spirituality. It is Thanksgiving Day. We are so happy that you're spending part of your Thanksgiving with us. To show our gratitude, we have a special guest who has a heartfelt story and it has everything to do with Thanksgiving and connecting with a loved one. Start the music. Hi everyone. Welcome to this very special Thanksgiving edition of Three Cups and a Dash of Spirituality. I am Michelle and I'm here with Stacy and Carissa. Hey, ladies. Hello, everybody. Hello. No, hello, hello today.

SPEAKER_04 0:41

Hello, hello.

SPEAKER_01 0:42

Okay, I like that so much better. But you know, Three Cups and a Dash of Spirituality is not just the three of us today. We have found a very special guest. He is a personal friend of mine, and I'm so excited to introduce my friend Craig. Hi, Craig. How are you?

SPEAKER_00 0:59

Doing well. How are you ladies doing on a Sunday? Doing well?

SPEAKER_01 1:03

Great. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 1:04

Terrific.

SPEAKER_01 1:05

Yeah, we all have really big smiles on our faces. We're excited about the upcoming holiday. We're so excited about your story. I have not shared any of it with Stacy or Carissa, but what a perfect story to share on Thanksgiving.

SPEAKER_00 1:21

Thanks for the uh intro and the lead-in. And so the story really is tied to Thanksgiving. I'll start by saying I was born on Thanksgiving. So just a mere 54 years and 360 so days ago. So I'm a huge Chicago Bears fan. Um, was born in Joliet, Illinois. Uh so I grew up around Chicago sports. My older brother, Kent, he's probably like Mr. Chicago Sports. So it'll be three years ago. He suddenly passed away. So it starts out sad, I promise it's a good, it's it's a happier story, but kind of sudden and unexpectedly, he had a stroke, and you know, the kind that you don't recover from. So that was on October 10th, 2021. And at the time I was living in West Michigan and Grand Rapids, Michigan. So up there, the Detroit Lions, another NFL uh team, other than the Bears, that they have a tradition going back, I think over 50 years, they always post a game on Thanksgiving Day. Over the years, my brother and I always we went to many games, right? But we never went to a Thanksgiving game because my mother would was like, you know, this is the holidays we celebrate. You're not driving to Detroit, and she lived in central Illinois. So even though it was my birthday, I'm like, come on, it's my birthday, you know.

SPEAKER_01 2:36

And but just no birthday wish for you.

SPEAKER_00 2:38

Yeah, 2021. If you remember, was uh we were still kind of in in the COVID times, and so my mom was a little standoffish about gathering for the holidays. So Robin knew I was a little uh, I don't know, I wouldn't say despondent. Just uh, you know, it's tough. You lose your he's my only brother, seven years older. So I'm not a big bro, you know, and and so she kind of came up with the idea and said, Well, why don't we why don't we go to the Bears game? But she managed to find two tickets, pretty good seats on the Bears side of the field where their their sideline is, and so we went to the game. Pretty cool, right? We get to the game and we're figuring out where our seats are, and you know, as fate would have it, you know, there's a little bit of a delay getting in the stadium because of the COVID protocols and stuff. So, you know, we're we're trying to get to our seats, and I hear the big roar, you know. So the Lions have already scored a touchdown. Like, great, we're already down seven points, and we haven't even sat down yet, right? And then as we sit down, another couple starts coming into the row right in front of us. And and it's the Bears fans because they both have Chicago Bears jerseys on. I'm assuming they're husband and wife. The man has like a Cleel Mack jersey, was a linebacker for the Bears back then, and then Brandy, the gal sits down and she has on a jersey that is a little different. And so I know this is a podcast, but I'm gonna show the lady. So she sits down in front of us, and this is the jersey that she has on. Oh my goodness, it says 101021 on it, and it has a 20 on the bottom. You see that? So I'm spoiling a little bit of the story because I have the jersey. So 101021 was the day my brother passed away.

SPEAKER_01 4:20

And at that point, it had only been six weeks, as you said.

SPEAKER_00 4:23

Yeah, it'd been about six weeks, yeah. And so I immediately I my first thought was you know, maybe Robin had gone to some trouble maybe to set something up, you know, to get a jersey made. And and I looked over to Robin and she's she's just white. I just kind of stood up and I said, All right, so you're here with me today, okay. But then I had to, I have to know like what's going on with this jersey. I've never seen a date with hyphens on a jersey, just never seen that. So we we interrupt ourselves, introduced ourselves, bro, uh Robin and I are to Brandy and Bill. The couple in front of us, and you know, I just said, Well, I have to know what the the significance of the date, I have to know what that is, and to explain to her why it was significant to me, right? And so what it was for her was her husband had this jersey made for she'd never worn it before, and 10, 10, 21, and the number 20. So that that marked 20 years of Brandy being a cancer survivor. Why he chose to put the day of that was 20 years instead of the first day, he said was because we're not it's not about the past, it's about you know it's about what you've accomplished. You know, we had a moment, you know, we had a hug and and uh we chit-chatted the whole game, and as fate would have it, the Bears ended up winning the game on the last play of the of the game with the field goal.

SPEAKER_01 5:49

That only sounds fitting, they should have won.

SPEAKER_00 5:52

Yeah, I mean, it was an amazing thing, right? And you know, I if the story ended there, it would be a great story, right? But but it didn't because you know Robin and Brandy were in in kind of contact with one another behind the scenes, a little unbeknownst to me. And you know, I think Robin just wanted to thank Brandy for that, you know, being there for that. They were in contact, and then on New Year's Eve, I got a FedEx package, and inside of it was the jersey. She she mailed me the jersey, she wanted me to have it. So and there was a note in there that you know basically just said uh, you know, that uh although I know my husband isn't the most happy about this, I prayed on it, and and I just feel like although he may not have known he that there was a higher power at work, and he made this jersey for the right reason, he just didn't know the reason he was making it. So it's like kind of like words to that effect, but much more eloquent than I. And, you know, wow. I mean, so we called, I called, obviously, and we talked, and it was pretty cool. And uh, I haven't shadow boxed it or anything like that because I I really had intention to figure out a way to give it back to her. Because I started uh we see some just uh some things, some numerology things with my brother, um, things that he was uh the number 33 is a significant number in his history. That then this happens, and so you know, you start to wonder, you know, is he okay? You know, and I thought maybe that was his way of kind of letting me know he was okay and and that I should be okay, right? So, you know, I kind of filed it away at that point. I mean, what an amazing story. What a I have this thing and and and it's mine to cherish and and life goes on, you know, and over about a six-month period of time or so, maybe even a little bit longer than that, but like towards the end of 2022, through a friend of Robin's who was a neighbor when she lived in Jackson, Michigan, her college roommate kind of asked me, Well, could you just write up kind of what happened? So I wrote a version of what I just explained to you. And and so in late December, the the owner of the Bears, uh reaching out to Robin initially, and then to me asking if we would, he said, I heard about your story, it's a crazy, amazing story. He said, Our last game of the year is actually in Detroit. You know, it's this coming Sunday. You know, we'd love to host you there. Or he said, or alternately, I'm not sure notice alternatively. Why we could have you come and come next year and we'd host you at Soldier Field for a game. And I said, Well, sure, love to do that. We got to meet players, we got to uh former players as well. You know, I did the did the interview with her his uh beat writer Larry, which ended up being an article that was published, and I can send you the link if you guys want to read it after, and it's got some nice pictures in it. The Bears had a great game that day, they were victorious, and uh uh Mr. McCaskey posted on his own Facebook about it, along with later on with the link to the article. But so a lot of his a lot of people commented on it, but one of his friends or peers pointed out that the final, you know, so 10-10-21, so that's 41 points, the final score of the game was 27-14, so 10-10 21, 27, 13, they both equal 41. So just more numerology things. And you know, to this day, I think you know, the the best part of it for me is that I get to tell a story. Everybody kind of has the same reaction, so I I'm I'm I really want to hear yours, but it just what else could it be? I mean, there's really no other plausible explanation for this, and you know, I'll and I'll end with you know, I always kind of joke with people to say, I don't know how many dishes, you know, my brother's doing up in St. Peter's cafeteria hall, you know, like to pull this off. Like how many favors did he have to call in with uh with the big man upstairs or or whoever you believe in, right? You know, but but that he he certainly is doing some KP duty or whatever it is you do when you ask uh to reach somebody that's still in the present.

SPEAKER_01 10:18

Well, thank you for coming on and sharing your story. It's the first time I heard it, I was just blown away by all the synchronicities, and it's one of those that just kept steamrolling. Like you got a pebble and then you got a stone, and it just kept building and building and building all the way up to and still beyond the score of 41. I do think it's awfully remarkable, and we are a football family here. I should say my husband is a football fan, so I do know that the Bears are playing this upcoming Thanksgiving against two Lions. Yeah, and that's only happened four times. So just another synchronicity here, and you being born on Thanksgiving, it all really does line up so beautifully.

SPEAKER_00 11:02

You know, I always try to be kind in all ways of life, but even more so now it's just because you just never know if somebody needs you and you want to stand up for people when when you have the chance to.

SPEAKER_01 11:14

So before I open up to Chris and Stacy to share their thoughts, jerseys are big in my home too. As I said, my husband's a huge football fan. And when his dad passed away, his dad was a Detroit Lions fan. And so it just so happened in 2016 on their birthday, because they had a Rob and his dad had a shared birthday. The Lions were playing the Cowboys, Lions being his dad's favorite team, Cowboys being Rob. So I did have jerseys made. I didn't think to put dates on the top of them. I put their names, I put my husband's initial on my last name, and then on the Dallas one. And then for my father-in-law's, I did the same with his name, but I put the year they were born. And one of those years, just talking to you right now, is 41. So kind of ties in there. But jerseys are really important. I I never have seen a date put on one. That's just amazing to me. Yeah. Stacey or Krissa, do you want to add anything, thoughts that have come up?

SPEAKER_04 12:16

Yeah, it's super cool in how our loved ones will communicate with us in all different ways. So my question is, why do you think your brother chose this way to communicate with you?

SPEAKER_00 12:27

Well, I just think, like I said, I wouldn't uh two weeks before, or I'll say a week before the game, I had to be in Arlington, Virginia for with my employer. You know, when you lose somebody in your life and your peers, you know, they want to acknowledge that, but they also don't know if it's okay to bring it up. What's that gonna do? And I I tried to talk about it a little bit. Um, not the jersey hadn't happened yet, but I just tried to talk about a little bit. And I I was having a tough time with it because it's just seemed, you know, you work your whole life, he's 58 years old, you know, I'm gonna be 55 here, you know. But you work your whole life and then you get to where you're you're finally I'm gonna enjoy the good life, you know, and then you're gone. It just didn't seem fair. So I just think it was the way I see the story is I believe he had a discussion with the people in charge, wherever he is, to say, I gotta let him know I'm okay. You know, I gotta send him a sign and not just like you know, something subtle.

SPEAKER_02 13:31

My my brother's gonna, I was gonna say it probably had to hit you over the head.

SPEAKER_00 13:35

Yeah. So that would be my brother's style. He was my big brother. He, you know, he he did what big brothers did, you know, but he was also my defender, my protector, you know. If I if I needed anything, my brother was was there for me. And yeah, so that's I I think he just said, Well, you know, they're watching, right? He's got power, he's got power up here too. I could do shit, I can do things. I'm sorry, pardon, pardon my language. Cheering you on, yeah, you know, and and have a supporter, you know, have fun, you know, uh enjoy life. You know, don't be don't be pouting because I'm not there.

SPEAKER_01 14:13

So do you Stacy, do you have any thoughts or questions about the story? Anything you want to share or add?

SPEAKER_02 14:17

So I I am just kind of sitting here reeling because I will tell you one of the biggest things for me is I get body full body chills when I know it's spiritual, it's spiritually connected, and just listening to your story, full body chills throughout the entire thing, which is just so beautiful. So, my immediate pull is like how cool that he's still looking at after you, essentially. But the other piece that I'm sitting here kind of giggling about is I'm actually from Dearborn, Michigan. So very familiar with the area that you're talking about, the Lions, everything along those lines. So I just I just think it's really cool to kind of bring that back, you know, home essentially, because that's where all of my family still is. So I just I just thought that I that was cool.

SPEAKER_00 15:01

Well, then you know, I mean, again, like I said, it couldn't be any other thing. Like it's hard to get tickets to the Lions game. And you know, there might have been there might have been a thousand Bears fans there, but there was 79,000 Lions fans there. I mean, just it wasn't like we saw her at a Bears game, right? This is at a Lions game, yeah. And it sat right in front of us. The art in the in the article, you can see the picture. If you have full body chills from us me talking about it, when you see the picture of Brandy, you'll know that it was him. It just and and they couldn't have been nicer. I I just what great people. And you know, I when we saw her at the game on the field, I did try to give her the jersey back, and she looked to me like she whipped her head around and she said, That is your jersey. That's the end of it. I said, Yes, ma'am. And Bill's like, you know, I he says, I I will make as many jerseys as you need, Craig, if we can keep coming to the football game.

SPEAKER_01 16:07

So will they be joining you this Thanksgiving at the game?

SPEAKER_00 16:12

They are gonna be at the game, but they're they won't be sitting with us. They they said they had their own tickets, so that I trying to be we'll we'll for sure we'll find them and we'll we'll probably have a a pregame toddy with them and and and and whatnot. But you know, I think that's the other part of it is I think there's a certain amount of time that Brandy wants to talk about it, and then I think there's also if you think about the story from her perspective, right? You know, the story's not over for her either, right? Exactly in a you know, in a in a different way. And she's still healthy, as far as we know to this day, and and and we do keep in in contact, but we're we're not in we have we we live definitely different lives. This was just uh, you know, the two this is just two ships that that are tied, and I think you know, we want to kind of this will be our first time seeing them kind of not with the bears, like that was just crazy, you know. We all sat together and we won and and uh but you're in the mass of humanity. It's just good all around, but also just there's a certain amount of you gotta be understand her side of the story is a little different side, so exactly.

SPEAKER_01 17:21

Well, as you go into the game this upcoming week, I mean I think it's really important. Remember not to have any expectations, just to be open to what is going to happen. I did think of a question, it's kind of a two-part question, but how did you view spirituality before this event and how has that changed your view on spirituality?

SPEAKER_00 17:44

Well, I I guess without getting into two, I don't want to get too deep, but I, you know, I lost my I lost my dad when I was in eighth grade school. I never really knew him, you know, so that always seemed like kind of a handicap that I had to deal with my life as a lot for my mom to raise two boys on her own. You know, I I was a just a churchgoer, and but the uh, you know, kind of the the interwoven fabric of the what I call the present and and folks in the afterlife, I probably not a big believer in the interconnectedness of it. I think I believe that when you're when your time in the present here is done, I don't think your time is done. I think there's some you know evolution that occurs and and then there's another part of your life that continues. I you know, everybody has different views of what what that looks like, where that is based, and all the things. But I I always kind of looked at it as two mutually exclusive things. I do feel like there's this overwatch going on now, and it it happens uh in a good way, it never in a bad way. I just we don't I don't like I'm not you know pining for a sign, right? I really wasn't. I I was upset with what had happened, but you know it's it's life, you know. If you live long enough, everybody that means something to you will pass, right? And that's older than you, right? And some that are younger than you. So part of life. But yeah, it's it has changed for me. I do I do feel like there's this overwatch that happens, and Robin and I giggle about it. It'll probably happen today after this. I I've been I've been on a my head's been on a swivel the whole time. Um you know, I don't know what's gonna happen, but something will happen. And and again, I I like keeping the story alive. I'm glad uh I can't thank you guys enough for letting me uh join your podcast and talk about it a little bit. But my advice to anybody that is, you know, you know, the the why, right? When you something happens in your life, you lose something, someone important, and you just it doesn't seem like it's their time, or maybe it was their time and you just you still miss them. But I think it's okay to just if you're receptive and open to to being touched, you know. I think I think it's a thing.

SPEAKER_01 20:13

I completely agree. And thank you so much for sharing your story today. It's is what Thanksgiving about is about. It's about connection, it's about living your story, uh, gratitude. And I hear all of that when you speak. There is no question in my mind, no doubt that that was your brother reaching out to you. And what an amazing experience to have. So thank you so much for being here for sharing it with us.

SPEAKER_00 20:41

Yeah, hey, thanks for having me. And uh, you know, if the serendipitous moments continue, I'm happy to come on and tell you about what happened next, you know.

SPEAKER_04 20:50

But you know, I think Michelle Michelle is all about serendipity, all about I see yeah, I see signs everywhere.

SPEAKER_01 20:59

And I will say, you're like, I'm waiting for what's gonna happen next. I will say in the beginning of this video, when you were talking about your brother, the lighting and your your background was doing something. So I wouldn't be surprised if he was there just like cheering you on, even in that moment. I agree.

SPEAKER_00 21:15

Thanks. And it it is uh, I wouldn't say therapeutic, but I I love telling, I love telling the stories just to be the right people. Um, and you guys are definitely uh those kind of folks. So thank you for that. And uh I don't want to monopolize all of your podcast time. I'm sure you have other compelling subjects to cover. Oh, this is wonderful.

SPEAKER_01 21:36

This this is your story. We planned this episode, it's being released on Thanksgiving for a reason, but I'm not letting any of you off the hook that easy because one of the only traditions or my biggest tradition at Thanksgiving is to go around the table and share something you're grateful for this year. So we're each gonna do that now, like a little round table thing, and then we'll close it out. Is that okay? Is it too pushy or bossy?

SPEAKER_03 21:59

Okay. Yes, yes, it is too pushy and bossy. Okay. Well, you know, that's who I am. So who am I gonna pick on first? Stacey.

SPEAKER_01 22:08

What are you grateful for this year?

SPEAKER_02 22:09

Man, I am grateful this year for all of the changes that have come to pass in my life. You know, the struggles that I've gone through and everything that's just happened. I know that things are finally going in a really good direction for me. So I'm just I'm grateful for all of the changes.

SPEAKER_01 22:25

I love that. How about you, Craig? What are you grateful for?

SPEAKER_00 22:29

I mean, a lot. I would say mostly though, I'm I'm grateful for this beautiful young lady over here to my left who's being shy and staying off camera. But Robin is uh why she is.

SPEAKER_01 22:44

She's so funny.

SPEAKER_00 22:46

She's just uh to meet her is is to know her. And uh she just she shines light into my life like as you know, Rob knows. I have a pretty high stress, high motion career that I function through, and and uh she's the best part of my day every day. So I'm very thankful for Robin, and I'm gonna make an honest girl out of her here in about three and a half weeks.

SPEAKER_01 23:11

So I love that. You're a man in love, and you both deserve like so much happiness. So I'm so excited to hear what's gonna happen next. Adventure.

SPEAKER_00 23:20

She's stuck with me. That's right.

SPEAKER_01 23:22

She's stuck with you. And how about you, Chris? What are you thankful for?

SPEAKER_04 23:26

Well, my daughter's a senior this year, so right now I'm just being grateful every day that I have her home. Watching movies together a lot, and I don't know. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:41

And I guess I would say I'm just really thankful for all these opportunities for meeting great people, getting to connect, and just showing up to do this another day and continue on this path and be becoming more comfortable with who I am. So I'm really grateful for that this year. And of course, everything else, but I didn't want to say the traditional, like you know, round the table thing. So that's where I'm at. Well, anything else, or shall we close this episode out?

SPEAKER_04 24:12

I'm good. Sounds great, very sweet. Uh and how anyone, anyone can talk with their loved ones when they've passed over.

SPEAKER_00 24:22

Yeah. Yeah. And I'm sure it's it's different ways and different days and and all the things, right? But if if you're I do think it's one of those things where I had to be smacked in the face with it because I probably wasn't looking.

SPEAKER_01 24:39

Yeah. It just unfolded exactly how it was supposed to. You may have missed things, but you weren't supposed to see them at that time. So just such a a blessing, a gift of connection, gift of Thanksgiving.

SPEAKER_02 24:51

Yeah. Well, you know, I'm gonna just say thank you again for sharing your story.

SPEAKER_01 24:54

Yeah, thank you. And that's a great place to end this. So, Stacy, take it away. Stay classy, sassy, and stay bada assie. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. Happy Thanksgiving, happy Thanksgiving.