Everyone should always get a warm welcoming at the dining table for Thanksgiving, as well as the other 364 days of the year. This is why so many people always invite family and friends… and their friends’ friends too. Keep this tradition up, and you’ll wind up with a platoon for Thanksgiving every year! But coming together without letting human-constructed boundaries like race and age get in the way is what this holiday is all about. And you’ll definitely love this story about Wanda Dench, who accidentally invited Jamal Hinton over for Thanksgiving, and that tradition continues.She ended up sending the invitation to a perfect stranger named Jamal Hinton. At the time, 17-year-old Hinton was confused when he got the text. But little did he or Dench know that this was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Hinton asked his “Grandma” to send him a photo just so he could be sure this was indeed, his grandmother he was talking to. Dench was puzzled by the request, but she realized there was no reason why she shouldn’t grant his seemingly unusual request.
Hinton realized the woman who had texted him wasn’t his grandmother. But he figured that she might have a tough time believing him. So, he decided to do something that would end up blowing her mind.
However, he saw no reason to let an opportunity like this go to waste. So, he asked her, quite adorably by the way, if he could still get some grubs. He never expected Dench to be the coolest grandmother ever and invite him anyway.
Hinton met his new “family” members that year and was surprised by how welcoming everyone was. But the invitation wasn’t a one-time thing either. Hinton was invited back for Thanksgiving in 2017, and then again in 2018.
For Hinton, this was a simple reminder that human beings can be seriously amazing, which is a perfect lesson for all of us to remember too. But the family doesn’t just stay in touch on Thanksgiving either. The bond that unites them remains strong throughout the year.
Dench has sent Hinton some gift cards for Christmas. And, as his high school graduation approached, she reached out to him to see how he was doing and what his plans were. It’s how she learned that his dreams included being a sports agent and possibly going to law school.
His girlfriend and Dench got along so well that she was invited over for Thanksgiving in 2018. So now she gets to spend quality time with her boyfriend’s Thanksgiving friends, who are all more like family than anything else.
Having everybody together at the dinner table is something Dench and Hinton look forward to every year. And since Hinton has an open invitation, it’s safe to say that they’ll both keep this tradition going for all future Thanksgivings.
Hinton still laughs at the fact that he had forgotten to bring the pumpkin pie in 2016, but fortunately, Dench had plenty. And he made it up to his “grandma” the following year by bringing a delicious pumpkin pie.
It truly is heartwarming to see that authentic human kindness and compassion still exist in a world full of ignorance and hatred. We only wish there were more grandmothers like her out there!
