She Bought An Ornament From The Thrift Store Without Knowing What It Really Was

When her daughter lifted and turned over her mysterious purchase to inspect it, something inside it moved. “There’s something inside,” her daughter whispered. She was not entirely convinced, but then something remarkable happened. This is not your average story…

Something Else Entirely

She shone the flashlight on the heart-shaped object to examine it further and she was able to make out a couple of round shapes in the glass. However, upon seeing the substance in the cavity, she knew the object she was holding was not a Christmas ornament at all – it was something else entirely.

Loved A Good Bargain

Plymouth resident Priscilla Bailey loved a good bargain. She could not help herself when she passed a charity shop or Goodwill store. She trawled the dusty boxes and shelves for anything which looked interesting or unusual.

Simply Breathtaking

However, she never suspected that that day’s frivolous bargain buy would result in this. Blue was Priscilla’s favorite color, and she collected different glass ornaments. When she saw the beautiful blue heart-shaped Christmas ornament, she knew she just had to have it.

The Price Tag

The piece was so unusual-looking and it simply took her breath away. However, what she did not know was that she would eventually discover something inside it which would make her unable to breathe.

Looking Closely

The beautiful glass ornament was among other Christmas tree decorations that her local Savers displayed on a table. When Priscilla saw its mere $2.00 price tag, she did not hesitate. She happily bought the ornament and took it home, thinking it would be a fine addition to the decorations she had for her Christmas tree or she could even give it as a gift.

Strangely Heavy

She only realized much later what exactly she had done…Priscilla took the item home, feeling excited to look at it closely. After unwrapping it, she started to study the engravings that were around its mounting.

A Lover Of Glass Art

She marveled at the tiny figures that were etched into the metal surrounding the glass – she thought they looked like little angels, or maybe Vikings. She turned the ornament this way and that. She admired how the glass sparkled when it caught the light that was coming in from her kitchen window.

Impressed But Puzzled

All of a sudden, she felt an odd sensation come over her. Even though the blue heart looked like it was hollow inside, it was heavy. Priscilla peered closer and her warm breath began to fog up the glass.

Compartments Inside

However, if something was indeed inside the trinket, she could not see it. She hung the ornament on a hook in the kitchen and did not really think about it again until her daughter came for a visit. Priscilla’s daughter, Kat, loved glass art and her passion for glass design and blowing was fulfilled when she began her very own business in glass blowing.

Asking For Help

Priscilla excitedly retrieved her new ornament and showed it to Kat, exclaiming, “Look what I found, I got it at Savers.” Naturally, the person who could perhaps give answers to the questions surrounding the glass heart was Kat.

Talking To Reporters

As Kat held the oddly-heavy item in her hand, she was impressed with the craftsmanship of the glass heart. She had not seen anything like it in the past, but she was also puzzled by its weight, just like her mother.

The Truth

Kat thought it was hollow but not empty since it was too heavy. Something had to be inside… and she really wanted to find out what it was, so she got a flashlight from a drawer in the kitchen and came running back.

A Heartbreaking Thought

Thrilled by Kat’s idea, Priscilla held the ornament up while her daughter shone the flashlight through the bauble from behind. Priscilla shook it a bit, and they saw the contents shift. After a few moments, the women realized there were two areas inside the glass.

A Long Shot

There were two golf ball-sized compartments inside that stored the secrets. They were shocked by what they saw. Priscilla knew she needed to call someone. People had to know about what they had found, so she made a call to the authorities and the Boston Globe.

The Story Of The Glass Heart

Shortly afterward, the journalists arrived and Priscilla took them to her kitchen so that she could explain everything. She was hoping the media would spread her story far and wide and someone would come forward to give more information about their discovery.

Keeping It Safe

“Right now, it’s hanging up there when I do my dishes. I sometimes stare at it,” Priscilla told the journalists. She added, “It’s small. The two spots in it are small, the size of a golf ball.” When she handed it to a reporter to be inspected, everyone was holding their breath.

Going To Social Media

It was becoming really clear that the bauble was not just an ordinary Christmas tree ornament. When she mentioned the powder inside, the journalists were incredulous. Kat took over and recounted how she had found out what secret the heart-shaped ornament was hiding.

Similar Stories

Priscilla fetched the flashlight again and shined it through the glass. It was as clear as day that there was powder moving inside. Kat recounted, “I said to her, ‘It looks like its ashes, Mom.’” But, who did they belong to?

Other Replies

Priscilla was definitely taken aback by the thought that the beautiful ornament could actually be an urn and it was unknown whose ashes were inside the bauble. She had been carrying around someone’s remains and shaking them, and worse still, she kept them in her home.

Theories

While the actual use of the trinket that she had bought was certainly off-putting, she thought of something else that broke her heart. What happened that led to someone’s ashes ending up in Savers?

Saddening Thought

Priscilla was brought to tears by the thought of a person’s loved one being unceremoniously sold at a thrift store. The family must have been heartbroken. However Kat knew exactly what had to be done about the sad situation – while it was a long shot, she knew she needed to try.

The Story

Kat said to the reporters, “It’s beautiful. It must have a story, so that’s my goal — to find out where and who this belongs to.” She hoped that since the police were notified about it and there was media coverage, someone would come forward after recognizing the urn.

Fate

However, in the interim, what would happen to the beautifully crafted urn? Until the urn’s rightful owner is found, Priscilla vows to keep it safe. She believes fate intervened that day in Savers and she was destined to find it.

National Coverage

Since the story had national coverage on the news and it was online, she is confident the owner of the urn will be found. The story reached Facebook – but that is when things started to become strange.

Facebook

Kat wrote on her Facebook post, “It breaks my heart that this was tossed away and just sitting on a shelf at Savers for $2.” She said that she hopes the person who comes forward is the actual owner and she can learn a bit more about the urn.

Original Owner

Whose ashes are inside, who does the urn belong to, and how did it end up in a thrift store, to begin with? Then, there was an odd reply to her post. The manager of Savers said that their donations are mostly made by locals, so it is highly likely that the owner of the urn lives around the area.

Going Viral

Then, Kat’s post became viral and people from different places were sharing similar stories. In fact, Connie Whiteman Slatt wrote in her reply to the post: “Please let me know what you find out as I have one also, found mine at a thrift shop too! It’s heavy in weight.”

Reply

Then, Connie Whiteman Slatt’s comment got a reply from someone else, who was saying that she also has a similar item. According to this person, her aunt had bought it from a thrift store that is in the Pacific Northwest.

Similar Cases

“Mine was iridescent and heart-shaped like this one, but much less ornament and more suncatcher-like. It was made from the ash of Mt. Saint Helen.” A woman with the nickname ‘Cat Willow VII’ wrote, “This could also explain what appears to be ashes enclosed within… could be a possibility.”

Getting Answers

Maybe the glass heart isn’t actually an urn. Hopefully, the person who donated it will come forward and give some answers. The viral story is going strong – hopefully, the blue heart’s secrets will still be revealed.

For The Time Being

Until Priscilla is able to find the original owner, or they come forward, she said the glass heart will hang peacefully over her sink. “I just thought it was pretty so maybe it was meant to come here who knows,” said Bailey.

Spooked

After finding out what the ornament really was, Priscilla was slightly frightened, “At first, I got spooked, for a second. But then, it’s been in the house all this time — a couple of weeks now — and it needs to find its owner!”. However, she later said, “There it sits, my spooky little friend.”

Waiting

When asked why she was keeping the ornament after she found out what it was, she said, “I think it’s pretty. It’s beautiful. It still hangs in my kitchen, even though I think it’s an urn. I just don’t know what to do with it other than hang it up and wait.”

Trying

In Kat’s Facebook post, she did her best to try and locate the original owners of the ornament. She wrote,  “Hey, friends! I am in desperate need of this post to go viral! My mom Priscilla Boddie Bailey bought this at Savers in Plymouth about 2 weeks ago. At first, we thought it was very unique until we got it home and realized it is full of ashes!!!! We want to return it to the rightful owner.”

Odd Case

As the famous saying goes, “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure”. Well, in this case, it was the complete opposite: the ornament must have been the previous owner’s treasure. All the same, Priscilla made sure to care for it until it can be retured to its true owner.

Bags Packed

Speaking of the famous quote, it seems to be a more common occurrence to have someone’s prized possession found unexpectedly. For Ivelise Hernandez, she was at the St. Petersburg-Clearwater Airport when she saw something happen. Her boyfriend, who accompanied her to the airport, was with her when the two saw a male passenger in the security line ahead of them being forced to throw away a parcel he had. Little did Ivelise know how important this moment would become for her.

Routine Inconvenience

As usual, all passengers went through the routine bag and luggage inspection before boarding. Despite it being an important procedure, most passengers find it tiresome. While Ivelise was waiting in line with her boyfriend, Rico, they noticed the line was taking longer than usual.

Waiting In Vain

While waiting to board the place, the man ahead was still having some sort of issue with the airport staff. It looked like there was an item in his bag stopping him from boarding his flight. Whatever it was, it must have been strictly prohibitied inside the plane. Both partied were arguing next to the metal detector. They seemed to be getting more agitated as they argued.

Red Flag

This aspet of traveling used to be a lot less strict than it is today. Ever since 9/11, security has been tightened all over the world when it comes to any kind of travel. The Transportation Authority of the United States (TSA) implemented strict guidelines for what is and isn’t allowed to be brought in a carry-on.

Strict Requirements

After 9/11, security personnel must have gotten used to being resented by passengers. It’s rather common to see passengers rolling their eyes when they hear ridiculous requests made by officials. To top it off, a lot of travelers are forced to throw away certain items before being able to board the plane. Even items like toothpaste aren’t allowed.

Escalating Argument

Ivelise and Rico watched as the man in front of them became more and more frustrated. His item must have been one that isn’t easy to replace. He tried compromising with TSA agents and asked what he could do in order to keep his parcel. Despite all the efforts he made, the TSA refused. They insisted the package be thrown away. By then, the couple knew they should do something about it.

Tossed Away

No matter how much the male passenger begged and pleaded with them, the TSA agents stood their ground. After a while, he was left with no choice but to throw away his parcel. Sullenly, he took the package out of his bag and threw it away in the nearest trash bin. At that moment, it was Ivelise’s turn to board as well. However, she asked Rico to do something rather unusual for her.

A Strange Mission

Aside from the distraught man, Ivelise and Rico were upset about what they had just seen. As she went to get her bags checked, Ivelise gave Rico an important mission. She told him to go through the trash and check what was inside the package to find out why it was prohibited.

Free To Go

In this situation, Rico had a distinct advantage since he could rifle through the trash bins without going through security. If the package was thrown out instead of being brought out for extra screening, that meant it wasn’t dangerous. Rico could easily take the package with him without going through the TSA agents. By this point, he knew the package was no ordinary item.

Uneasy On-Board

Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, Ivelise couldn’t help but worry about the male passenger. She was so curious about the item he had to throw away before boarding his flight. As soon as she landed, she called Rico. She couldn’t wait to find out what was in the parcel that the man didn’t want to part with. When Rico told her what it was, she knew she had to do something about it.