Every one of us has a different outlook on life. That’s why meeting new people can often bring a wave of freshness into our lives, which we sometimes need so much. The main thing to remember is that these things often happen quite unexpectedly, and they can only reach us as long as we’re open to them.

One such story went viral back in 2016 when a grandma, wanting to invite her grandson over for Thanksgiving dinner, accidentally sent a text to a stranger instead. After the misunderstanding was cleared up, the guy asked if he could come by anyway, leading to their first meetup. This year, the duo is set to celebrate their 9th Thanksgiving together. Scroll down to learn all about it!

More info: X

Sometimes, the best friendships come from the most unexpected encounters

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

Wanda Dench and Jamal Hinton first met after the woman accidentally sent a Thanksgiving invitation to the guy’s phone number, thinking it was her grandson’s

Almost exactly 9 years ago, Arizona resident Wanda Dench was organizing Thanksgiving dinner for her family. Naturally, to invite everyone, she sent out texts, among which was a message intended for her grandson.

However, because the woman’s grandson had recently changed his number, the message instead reached Jamal Hinton from Phoenix, a then-17-year-old who answered, explaining that he was not, in fact, her grandson.

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

After clearing up the misunderstanding, Jamal jokingly asked if he could still come, and the woman agreed, leading to their first-ever meet-up and a selfie that later went viral

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / Instagram

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / Instagram

The duo exchanged pictures to confirm it, and the misunderstanding was cleared up. However, Jamal actually quite liked the idea of that dinner, so he asked if he could still come despite not actually being Wanda’s grandson, to which the woman replied, “Of course you can. That’s what grandmas do… Feed everyone.”

Despite living a good couple of hours away, Jamal and Wanda didn’t leave it as a joke and actually met up to share the joy of this celebration. This began one of the most wholesome friendships that soon went viral when the screenshot of the conversation and their selfie together were shared online.

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

Ever since then, the duo has been meeting up every Thanksgiving and on other occasions, becoming like a family to each other

Ever since then, the duo has become very close. In addition to celebrating Thanksgiving with each other and their families, Jamal and Wanda also found some shared interests, like following the same sports teams, which pretty much made them family and even led them to become business partners, selling products, hosting Thanksgiving with Airbnb guests, and more.

Jamal was also there for Wanda when her husband tragically passed away during the COVID-19 pandemic back in 2020 and when she herself was diagnosed with cancer this very year.

Fortunately, despite the more grim situation, neither of the former strangers has lost their spirits. Both of them are committed to continuing the tradition and sharing a festive meal with each other for the 9th year in a row, and all of their online followers can’t wait for yet another selfie, which has since become one of X’s most wholesome traditions.

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

This year, Wanda was diagnosed with cancer, which made the situation a bit more grim, but they’re both still committed to making their 9th Thanksgiving anniversary happen

Not everybody likes family get-togethers, which usually occur on most, if not all, of these major holidays. However, according to an article on McGregor Pace, these meetings are important and hold value for members of all ages.

Spending time with your family is undeniably the best way to connect, bond, and create shared memories with the people around you while also exposing everyone to cultural traditions that get passed down to the younger generations.

At the same time, family gatherings offer not only relationship-building and fostering values, but they can also be a great source of emotional support and provide ever-so-needed stress relief. No matter what you might be going through, these meetings just have something about them that can help you forget about the outside world, if only for a moment.

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

Of course, as shared by Ali Johnson on the Reporter, not everyone is born into a loving, or, at the very least, tolerable family. Fortunately, this bond doesn’t have to be defined by blood relations.

If we don’t like people around us, it’s always up to us to make a change. It’s people that we love and care about who become our family, and while blood relatives can absolutely be that too, it’s not the Middle Ages, and pure biological relations don’t entitle anyone to anything.

Family should be the source of our long-term happiness, and we can hardly achieve that when we force ourselves to spend time with people who make us feel miserable. But we are never truly alone. There will always be people who get us and want to be with us. Sometimes, it just takes a little bit of looking to find them.

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

Image credits: Jamal Hinton / X

In the end, it’s beautiful to see stories like Wanda and Jamal’s, where people discover connections they didn’t know they needed in their lives. It’s definitely one of life’s greatest joys, and they’re not wrong for treating it like one. Let’s just hope there are many more of their Thanksgiving selfies yet to come.

What did you think about this story? Do you enjoy family gatherings? Share it all in the comments below!

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