Stories
The stories on this page are about real experiences of real people being authentic. There is no hype here, no slick sales pitch, no fiction. Not all of these stories will be sad. Some will be happy, exciting or will make you laugh. But they will all be about the true essence of being alive. The written stories are real and have been submitted by individuals who have seen this site. The videos have been taken from across the web and are not necessarily about greeting cards. They are inspiring, breathtaking, fun, heart warming or just really good stories that I had to share. Enjoy.
I am writing a book that will be called “You Matter to Me.” It is a compilation book much like “Chicken Soup for the Soul” and will be a collection of the heartfelt stories of cards from SendOutCards that have touched someone’s life. If you want to submit a story for the book, please email it to me at jimc@youmattertome.com. In addition to tear-jerker cards, I also want funny, inspiring or thought provoking cards and cards that transformed people’s businesses. Each story will include the images of the actual cards that were sent. If the book is well received, I plan to expand it over time with more editions and additional stories.
Butterflies from Brian.
by Traci B.
My side of the story:
Brian is one of the best friends that I have had since childhood. Over the years, he has brought me joy, laughter, and a willing shoulder to cry on. As we grew out of childhood, life got tough for him and in August of 2007, just days before his 37th birthday, he put a gun into his mouth and pulled the trigger. On that sad day, his mother called my mom bearing the news. For most of the first year, Brian’s mother was inconsolable and in therapy.
On the one year anniversary of Brian’s death, I sent her a card with a return address of Heaven. Here is that card.
Outside of the card:
A picture of a beautiful monarch butterfly
What I wrote on the inside of the card (left):
Dearest Sharon,
Don’t cry because it’s over;
smile because it happened.
God
What I wrote on the inside of the card (right):
Dear Mom,
I hear your tears and prayers.
I don’t want you to be sad for me anymore.
I am free.
Now it is your turn to be free and live out loud by loving life.
Each time you see a butterfly, I want you to smile and know that it is me
- and we will feel close to each other’s heart for that moment.
Be free now mom…and be happy.
I love you forever Mom,
Brian
Her response:
When I saw the card with a return address of Heaven I started getting choked up. When I opened it and read what it said, I couldn’t breathe and my eyes flooded with tears. I took that card out on to the patio and began reading and re-reading it and re-reading it and as I sat in silence, with tears streaming down my face, a butterfly landed beside my arm, fluttered his wings for a few moments and then flew away. Not knowing where the card came from, I called Traci’s mother and told her about the card and the butterfly and said that it had not only freed me from my guilt and pain that day, it had saved my life.
Follow up:
A few weeks after I sent the card, I received a package in the mail from Brian’s mom with a hand written letter and a beautiful heart and diamond encrusted necklace that said “Thank you freeing me from the depths of my pain. Please accept this necklace in memory of Brian and please be reminded of a life that your kindness has saved.”
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Thank you for always being there for me dad.
by Michele R.
My side of the story:
I did not grow up in my dad’s house as my parents were divorced early in my life. I visited him for summers, holidays and special occasions. He was typically pretty busy with work and when he got home, he was tired. So when I did see him, he always tried to give his best but it wasn’t until I was an adult (early 20’s) when I moved back to Colorado after getting out of the Marine Corps that he and I truly became joint as father/daughter.
I had been using the online greeting card service that is used by You Matter to MeTM for just over 2 years and would send my dad father’s day cards, birthday cards but they were not real meaningful cards where I told my dad how much I truly loved him. So in October of 2008 I decided to mail him a truly heartfelt card.
Outside of the card:
A picture of a young child’s hand wrapped around an adult’s index finger.
What I wrote on the inside of the card:
Dad,
I was thinking about you today and tried to imagine what being my dad must be like.
- being born just a little over 2 lbs.
- living in another state during my childhood
- beauty pageants and all!
- pregnant as a teenager
- watching me leave to be a US Marine with very short notice
- having me come home from Japan pregnant and with a hubbie you never met
- marriage and divorce
- family parties, changing jobs, lots of fun times with grandkids
- having the oldest and youngest grandkids
- being diagnosed with life-threatening MS
- blood clots, hospital, almost dying, etc.
As I think about the roller coaster of life I have had you on…the great thing is you never get off the ride. Thanks for being willing to ride with me through the ups and downs.
Thank you for always being there for me dad.
I love you,
Your daughter,
‘Chele
His response:
The day he received the card, I got a call from my dad and I had never heard him so choked up. He could barely talk. At first, all that he could get out was “I got the card.” As he calmed down, he said, “Thank you for the card” and that he “would never throw it away”. In fact, he hung it right above his desk where he can look at it every day. Now, in May of 2009, (7 months later) I just called him to ask him if he would tell me how it felt to get that card, he said without hesitation, “I still have it and know right where it is”. Now THAT is powerful!
