Jen and her brother, Todd, were just 10 and 12 years old when their father began dating Shirley Norton. It was 1986. Their love affair was short-lived, lasting only a year.
And while it may have been brief, it left an impact that stayed with Shirley until she died.
Eighteen years later, Jen received a phone call out of the blue. It was from a bank manager, informing her that Shirley had bequeathed $50,000 each to her and her brother. But in addition to the inheritance, Shirley also left behind a note.
A Random Phone Call
@intoxicatedinsights69 Absolutely gut wrenching story! Step parents truly are angels on earth. Thank you guys for all that you do. Thank you to the endlessly fascinating Jen, for sharing this story with us. Full episode is out. Link in bio
Jen recently shared her story on her podcast, Intoxicated Insights. She also posted a clip of the episode on TikTok where it has gone viral, garnering more than 2 million views, 237,000 likes, and nearly 5,000 comments.
"I get a random phone call, this is like 2004, I have two small children," she explained to her co-host Sage.
"I get this random call from this woman from Utah who's a bank manager telling me that one of my dad's ex-girlfriends has passed away and left me and my brother $50,000 each."
Jen via TikTok
Initially, she thought she was being punked. It took the bank manager more than half an hour to finally convince Jen to provide her address.
She explained to Sage that the woman the bank manager called her about was "legit" one of her father's ex-girlfriends and they had only dated for one year before he broke up with her. But throughout that year, Shirley took care of Jen, buying her clothes, decorating her room, and being "absolutely sweet" to her.
Jen remembers the day Shirley left. She begged Shirley to take her with her.
"I might have seen her like maybe one or two more times but my dad got a new girlfriend and that was that."
Until 18 years later...
When Jen received the mail from the bank manager she discovered that in addition to the cash, Shirley had also left behind a two-page letter.
Jen has held onto that letter for 20 years.
The Letter From Her Father's Ex-Girlfriend
Jen's father's ex-girlfriend bequeathed $50,000 each to her and her brother. But in addition to the inheritance, she also left behind a note.
Youtube/intoxicatedinsights
Holding back tears, Jen read Shirley's letter aloud:
"Dear Todd and Jenny, I bet you both are asking yourself, who is she?" the letter began.
"I met you and your father in 1986 when you were about 10 and 12 years old. You each made a remarkable impact on me. You were both great kids. You were friendly and made me feel welcome in your lives."
To further jog the siblings' memories, Shirley wrote that at the time Jen wanted to be an actress and own a pink Ferrari. She talked about going to SeaWorld and spending Thanksgiving at Lake Tahoe. She reminisced about Knotts Berry Farm and eating dinner together on the Queen Mary.
"Todd, when we went to Circus Circus, you won a little stuffed lion for me," she added. "I still have it."
And when Jenny went to camp? She made Shirley a wall hanging out of a pie plate. "I still have it too," Shirley wrote.
"I never had any children of my own," she added. "But for that one year you made me feel like I was part of your family."
Cue the tears.
Shirley also shared in the letter that she'd had a kidney transplant in 1992. "This gift of life gave me many extra years so I could enjoy this amazing world."
She ended the letter, writing: "I had a good life. I would like to make your life a little easier and more secure. I pray you both have wonderful lives. P.S. Jenny, please don't buy a pink Ferrari," she joked before adding, "But if you really want one, buy it."
"We don't always know the impact we make on someone's life"
@intoxicatedinsights69 Replying to @AileneTH jen says thank you!
The money came at a time when Jen needed it most. In a follow-up TikTok she explains her son had just been diagnosed with autism.
"At the time my youngest son had just got diagnosed with autism and so the money was great because I paid for a lot of therapies for him."
She also shared that the family moved "and it did make my life a lot better." (Although she never did get that pink Ferrari).
But it's the letter that is truly priceless.
"The letter was the best. I've held onto it for all these years. I read it, it's sad, and it always touches my heart."
Jen via TikTok
It's also touched the hearts of more than 2 million TikTok viewers.
"Perfect example that we don’t always know the impact we make on someone’s life. She never forgot you," one commenter wrote.
"Omg I’m sobbing 😭.. that was so so sweet," wrote another. "All the memories she still had of the kids ❤️❤️"
A third said, "As an adult child of divorce who’s Dad had many girlfriends that I loved but never got to say goodbye to, this helped to heal me. Maybe they loved me as much as I loved them."
Sometimes people aren't meant to stay in our lives. They are there for a short time and then they're gone. But just because they are no longer with us, it doesn't mean they are forgotten.
Shirley never forgot the time she spent with Jenny and Todd, even two decades later. Her generous bequest and heartfelt letter were a testament to the deep impact their brief connection had on her life.
It's also a sweet reminder that blood isn't what binds a family together. It's love, no matter how briefly we get to share it.
*Featured image contains photo by cottonbro studio
Whatever You Do, Don't Panic
Don’t you hate it when people tell you to calm down? I don’t like it either. But having that steady demeanor can sometimes keep you from derailing your relationship, career, and life. This is a story of how a moment’s calm in the face of distress saved an important project that I had been leading for almost a year. What should have been a major setback turned into an inspiring moral victory for the team.
When the stakes are high, a steady head will keep the situation from spiraling into a catastrophe. This was my biggest lesson from this experience.
Whatever You Do, Don't Panic
I surveyed the room. Tension, stress, desperation, and hopelessness wore themselves on people’s tired faces. We had spent the last 50 minutes discussing the final few points of an important document set for release in the upcoming weeks only to come to the realization that it might not pass muster; the light at the end of the tunnel was dim.
The room fell into an uncomfortable silence.
Sensing mental exhaustion and lack of possible progress, I closed the topic and the team careened out the door like drunken sailors, chuckling at the impossible situation we found ourselves in.
Somehow, I felt an unnatural calm wash over me. Shouldn’t I be frantically searching for answers? I asked myself. After all, I was the project lead, and this was a key deliverable after almost a year of work. My mind was racing but not in a frantic mode. I was formulating steps forward, planning for the next discussion, and finalizing potential proposals to get this important artifact out the door.
Stop and breathe
A few moments later I found my manager sipping on black coffee at our on-campus Tully’s. The smell of coffee gave me a jolt. I caught up with him and we walked back to our office together. I always found the walk to/from the coffee shop the most relaxing, mainly because it gave me an opportunity to clear my head, get some fresh air, and enjoy the cherry blossoms along the way.
“I think I know a path forward, and I think we can get this done as promised,” I told him in all seriousness.
A pause.
He looked at me in confusion as though saying through his eyes, “Were you not in that meeting?” It took a few moments for him to ask me, “You really think so?”
“Yes, I do. There’s a few key points brought up this morning, but I think I know a way for us to get consensus.”
He nodded. I don’t think he really believed me. We parted ways back to our respective desks. I went to work. I drafted a few proposals and after a healthy discussion with the project team soon after, we rescheduled a meeting with the same key stakeholders from the morning session for that afternoon.
We met in a small conference room and within an hour came up with a compromised solution to keep the project on track.
Victory.
From crisis to opportunity
I left the office that day exhausted, but there was a definitive pep in my step. Not only did we avert disaster, but we also turned the tides, and I truly believed we were on our way to producing a higher quality product because of it.
In retrospect, that successful turnaround was made possible by a few factors: one, the team had time to blow off steam and regroup mentally; two, we didn’t let the morning loss deflate us -- we got right back up and went to work that very afternoon to resolve the problem; and lastly and most importantly, my hand never wavered -- I stayed as steady and level-headed as needed to lead the team through the challenge. I truly believe that had I panicked, the project would have been derailed.
Eye on the horizon, and steady on
Staying steady is difficult at times, especially when turmoil or utter excitement surrounds you. But those times are exactly when you need to breathe, slow down, and quell your emotions lest you make regretful decisions. The story I told is work-related, but the lesson can be applied in all facets of life.
Don’t let a dip in the stock market drive you off the side of the cliff, and conversely, don’t let a sudden boost in your mutual funds convince you to buy that yacht you can’t afford. Don’t suddenly start drinking three glasses of red wine nightly because some study said red wine is the best for your health. Chances are, another study will come out within a few weeks to dispute that claim.
Life is an unexpected ride through the jungle, in a beat-up Jeep, with random stops along the way. There might be consecutive moments of terror as your car climbs out of a ditch. There might be long stretches of pure serenity and beauty as jungle creatures come out to greet you. But your survival depends on you, the driver, staying steady as you navigate the treacherous paths: don’t over steer, don’t slam your brakes at the slightest rustling of the leaves, don’t grow complacent and fall asleep during the long stretches of paved roads, don’t despair if you lose radio signal, and don’t grow so emboldened as to invite the mountain lion into your car because it’s so cool.
Steady your car, my friends, and I’ll see you at the oasis in the middle of the jungle.