Awesome - When One Woman Texted Her Late Brother's Phone, She Didn't Expect To Get A Reply
When a loved one dies, it can be hard to let go. Many people try to keep a connection, whatever it takes. For some, this can mean visiting a grave, memorializing on social media, or even texting their old phone number. But after Ruth Murray lost her brother in 2019, things became especially weird when she started receiving messages from his phone.
Thick As Thieves
Mike and Ruth Murray grew up together in Minneapolis. As adults, the two remained just as close, that is, until their lives suddenly and tragically changed forever.
Grown Up, Worn Down
Mike’s life took a sour turn. The young man developed a serious drug addiction, and it eventually took his life through a heroin overdose in March 2019.
Barely Coping
For many, moving past a loved one’s death can be extremely daunting. Ruth tried to go through the typical motions of visiting her brother’s grave, but nothing was connecting her back to her “brothaboo.”
Texting a Ghost
As a coping mechanism, Ruth began texting her brother’s old phone number, even though it was no longer in use. Obviously a little crazy, but for Ruth, it was the most comforting thing she could do at the time.
No Expectations
It wasn’t necessarily the case that Ruth was expecting her dead brother to respond. Instead, she did it to continue the tradition of daily texts to keep his memory alive.
Old Habits Die Hard
In an interview with the BBC, Ruth said that she found herself reaching for the phone without thinking, partially out of habit, but also because it was comforting. She definitely wasn’t expecting what happened next.
Surprise Response
Days passed with no response, not that Ruth was expecting one. But then, to her surprise, her phone buzzed. She checked her messages and saw the sender was "brotherboo."
Happening Too Fast
Ruth wasn’t crazy. She knew that her brother was gone for good and assumed his number would be eventually reassigned. She just wasn’t expecting for that to happen so fast! And the person on the other end was definitely not what she expected.
The Woman on the Other End
To Ruth’s surprise, the woman on the other end handled the situation way more gracefully than she could’ve imagined, texting "I'm sorry to here (sic) that you're missing someone, but unfortunately you have the wrong number."
400 Miles Away
As it turns out, the woman who’d been assigned Mike’s old number was Amber Leinweber. She was 32 years old and lived over 400 miles away in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Most people would’ve let the texting go, but both women had something else in mind!
A Vulnerable Moment
Ruth was taken aback by Amber’s reply. Of course she knew she had the wrong number, but she wasn’t expecting the stranger who’d inherited it to be so kind and empathetic!
Shared Experience
Amber wasn’t simply taking pity on Ruth. On the contrary, she had also lost a loved one and grieving. Amber was going through a similar battle on her own.
Sounding Boards
After a couple of exchanges, the two women became each other’s sounding boards! Who knew a text from a stranger could lead to the most surprising case of talk therapy? But, their story continued.
Reddit Friendly
Ruth was so moved that she posted screenshots of their touching exchange on Reddit. Little did she know, the post would blow way up, eventually getting over 80,000 likes!
Network of Support
Similarly to the two women themselves, their fans on Reddit weren’t just cheering them on, they were relating! Through the post, countless others admitted to texting lost loved ones in order to feel closer.
Amber's Ambivalence
Were it not for Amber’s decision to finally respond, Ruth could’ve continued texting to no avail. She wasn’t even trying to connect with Ruth by responding, only to let her know she was mistaken. Good thing she decided to reply!
Connected Through Poker
In a strange twist of fate, Ruth and Amber discovered they had a weird link to one another, and it was through none other than Mike himself. Apparently, he and Amber’s brother used to play online poker together! Finally, Ruth had an idea.
Making the Trip
With all these coincidences and through constant contact, the two grew closer and closer until finally deciding to meet in the flesh. Ruth got in her car and drove 400 miles to meet Amber.
A Blossoming Friendship
Especially after finally connecting in person, the two are officially friends. Ruth learned that Amber had inherited Mike’s number on her work phone, so she shared her personal one instead.
Coincidence or More?
The jury’s still out on why this unlikely bond came to be. Ruth simply said that she wasn’t expecting it, but Amber sincerely believes the universe was trying to bring them together. It could have been fate, as theirs isn't the only friendship formed by a wrong number slip-up.
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