An Unforgetable Ending

Going back to a couple of posts from earlier this year here is a quick review.

 

Part I

 

Part II

My nephew was living with me while his father was getting his life back together in Seattle. He shared a love of Macklemore with his dad so I purchased a 2015 Topps Macklemore First Pitch card for him. My nephew eventually returned to Seattle and within a short time someone broke in to his house, stole their electronics and they also stole the cards I gave my nephew including the Macklemore card.

I picked up another First Pitch card and sent it to Macklemore with a letter explaining how my nephew has had a rough life and that I gave him the card and how it was stolen and I asked for an autograph and Macklemore was more than happy to sign under the circumstances.

I gave the card to my ex-wife when the autographed card was returned to me in May and she was supposed to send it to him as a late birthday present. I found out last month that she had not sent the card so I urged her to please do it as a Christmas present and she finally sent it off last week. When he got it we asked that his father FaceTime us so we could see my nephew’s face.

Here he is opening his present with my narration

The look of an 8-year old getting a present

 

The look of an 8-year old opening the present and seeing it is a Macklemore card replacing the one that was stolen

 

The look of an 8-year old when he realizes that the card is signed by Macklemore

 

The look of an 8-year old boy when he finds out that Macklemore signed the card specifically for him

Maybe A Positive Ending Afterall

In a follow up to a story I wrote in March regarding my nephew.

A quick rundown of the original post. My nephew, who was 8-years old at the time, was living with us and was missing his father. His connection with his father was through Macklemore’s music so when Topps included Macklemore in their 2015 Topps First Pitch checklist I picked up a card for him to help put a smile on his face. When his father was able to afford a place we sent Dakota back up to Seattle to be with his dad. Shortly after they moved in to their new home it was robbed and someone took all of Dakota’s baseball cards including his Macklemore card, which broke his heart. I picked him up a replacement and sent it in his birthday card at the end of March but I wanted to get something special for him to make up for everything so I picked up a second Macklemore card and sent it to Macklemore with an autograph request and included a letter explaining everything.

I got the card back today, it took 39 days, and Macklemore signed the card “MACK” in gold pen. I think it is quite amazing that he would take the time to answer an autograph request for a young boy who has had a tough going in life.

I didn’t tell Dakota that I was doing this so he will be in for a huge surprise.

 

A Happy Story That Ends With An Idiot Doing Idiot Things

Every so often you come across a card that has some special meaning to you, it can be the first card you ever pulled or a player that you met or even a card that reminds you of something from your childhood.

My nephew, who is 8 years old, has had a tough life. Without going in to detail my brother-in-law has made some bad decisions over the years so in my nephew’s short life we have had guardianship for a little over 4 years off and on including the past couple of months. Like any child he misses his father, who lives in Seattle, and his father has promised to take him to a Macklemore concert when they are back together. For my nephew Macklemore equals his father’s love.

When the 2015 Topps checklist came out and I saw that Macklemore was included in the First Pitch insert I knew I had to get one for my nephew the first day it came out. A card that cost less than $2 means the world to my nephew and that makes it priceless. A simple piece of cardboard put such a huge smile on his face, he brought the card to school to show all of his friends and for the first couple of days it never left his sight. He may never get to see Macklemore with his father but at least for now this card brought him closer to the day he will be back with his dad.

 

 

UPDATE: Since I originally wrote this post (the end of February) my nephew returned to his dad in Seattle last week and sadly two days ago someone broke in to their house and among the things that they took was the box my nephew kept all of his cards in and while he was upset about the loss he was in tears about losing the Macklemore card. I just do not understand why people would steal a child’s box, it had kid’s stickers all over the outside, no matter what is inside.

I have another card on the way already that we will send him for his birthday and I am planning on something special to cheer him up.