When we lose someone close, the feelings that implant themselves within us can be contradictory and unpredictable even to ourselves.
Of course, everyone grieves in a different way and it’s not unusual for that way to take multiple forms, but the depression that comes from our late loved ones’ absence and the wistful comfort that comes from their memory can become clear in how we honor them.
RELATED STORIES
While some may peruse the old photos they shared together and others may dial their number repeatedly just to hear their voice again, it’s also possible to find treasured mementos in places you wouldn’t expect.
For a group of bereaved Twitter users, that unexpected source of closure and remembrance has been Google Maps.
A few years ago, Twitter user @yajairalyb lost her grandfather under regrettable circumstances that left her without a chance to say goodbye to him.
By chance, she and her family happened to discover that at some point, the Google Street View car had driven through his farm.
To her amazement and relief, she discovered that it happened to catch him sitting by the end of the road.
Her tweet would soon pique other users’ curiosity and many replies documented their own searches for Street View Images of their fallen relatives’ homes.
To her bittersweet excitement, one user got to see a photo of her own grandfather that she hadn’t encountered in the eight years since he passed away.
For 21-year-old Andrea Pristas, the photo the Google car took of her dad was one he told her to watch out for.
He happened to see the car pass by while he was washing his own car and waved at it and she told Buzzfeed News that she was more recently inspired to see whether it was still up. And as she tweeted out, she was still able to see it three years after her father, Randy, had died.
“I cried the first time I saw it after he died,” she told Buzzfeed News.
While most of the replies considered dead relatives, some discovered that the memories of their non-human family members had also been preserved.
There’s something immensely charming about seeing an animal take interest in the Street View car, but it becomes much more meaningful when it concerns a beloved pet you can no longer cuddle.
It turned out that one user had the very same idea a whole year ago and found a similar photo of her dearly missed grandmother.
Those who saw this woman’s tweet comforted her with the thought that her grandma is now as contented as she appears in this photo.
While most of the users involved got a chance to see a dear grandparent again as a result of this idea, one spotted two of her grandparents out together.
She went on to say that both of them have passed in the years since the Street View car caught them gardening.
As Google sent Street View cars out all over the world, it stands to reason that this phenomenon would also reach across borders.
As we can see, the image of this street in Mexico gave one user a chance to see his great grandfather walk proudly through the streets anew.
And as he explained, adjusting to life without his dear great grandparents is something this person has had to undertake fairly recently.
When someone can describe a family member they lost as their rock, the power of finding them again should not be underestimated.
With that in mind, it’s easy to see why this thread would make this woman’s day after six years without her grandma by her side.
One user found not only their grandfather on a Street View camera, but a significant part of their family.
And so, they saw fit to make it clear which one they were honoring. They clearly found a lovely way to do that.
With these candid Street View shots with other family members, some users got another chance to see their departed loved ones with those they were closest to.
And this user also made an edit to the photo they found to point out who their departed uncle was. This time, with a halo.
Although this person had already thought of searching for their fallen mom’s house on Google Maps, they’re clearly happy to see others get the chance to experience the same warm feelings.
It truly makes those feelings all the more powerful when the Street view car just happened to catch a dearly remembered loved one when they were truly happy.
This person didn’t catch either grandparent outside of their home, but they did at least see their uncle washing his truck.
This user didn’t elaborate on whether their uncle was still with us or not.
One particularly sweet post featured a young woman surprised to see her Nana standing in the doorway.
As others have noted, the way she’s standing with her hands on her hips is essentially the classic grandma pose.
One user seemed to take this as a moment to appreciate their family members before they have to see them in memoriam like the others.
For him, seeing his dad run errands became a reason to be grateful that he’s still here rather than because he has a long lost chance to see him again.
Some users were also deeply appreciative that someone even put this idea in their heads.
This woman, for instance, would never have known she could see this photo of her dad until four years after he had departed.
