A woman gravitated toward a picture frame while at the thrift store, but when she flipped it over, she immediately began tearing up, as it honored a person's late dog.
Cici shared she recently found a picture frame at the thrift store on the subreddit channel r/thriftstorehauls on October 11, which has since garnered over 6,300 upvotes and 120 comments. The $4.99 price tag was enticing, but that's not what made it stand out. She told Newsweek that this picture frame originally captured her attention because it was made of marble.
"I thought maybe it was like an engraved slab, so I grabbed it and it turned out ot be this piece of memorabilia," she said.
She choked up while reading the inscription, which said: "Thanks for everything - I had a wonderful time." Sandwiched in between was a photo of a Dalamatian running toward the camera. Cici immediately started considering why this photo ended up at the thrift store. She thought someone had passed, and a loved one began sorting through their things, deciding on what to keep and what to donate.
A rush of emotions came over her while she held the frame. It hit home. She began thinking about her dad and his dog.
"She's getting up there in age, and I thought about getting it to give to him for when she passes," Cici said, but decided against buying the frame.
Cici did not want to have it as a reminder of what the future holds: a heartbreaking day when her dad's dog passes.
"I think I'd rather have to cross that bridge and find something to honor her and give to him when the time comes," she said.
But seeing this picture frame in the thrift store still left her wondering why it had been donated originally. Cici wrote in the caption that she hopes that the dog and owner are together again.
Reddit users flooded the comment section with similar emotions to Cici, as this frame's inscription brought back their own memories.
"I've seen this frame before, and it gets me every time. I also have a thrifted one, but instead of a phot,o it's a drawing of a dog. It sits next to my urn of my Jack," one user wrote.
Another added: "Sometimes gifts like these are just too sad. I can understand not wanting this."
A third person commented: "Thank you for posting this. I just lost my precious cat and I'm going to make this with my Cricut to honor her."
Others stated the picture of the dalmatian is the original one put inside the frame, giving some hope to Cici that the person who donated it did not lose their dog. A quick Google search of the frame's inscription revealed that the frame can be bought at The Home Depot. The listing included the same photo of the dog.