Grief can make even small gestures deeply impactful, as a woman recently found out after posting a video to TikTok after her mother's recent death.
Erin Barbee, who goes by @gardenoferin on TikTok, had wanted a wildly popular "Boat and Tote" bag from L.L. Bean for her birthday this year. Her mother obliged and put in the order, along with custom embroidery.
However, as the bag is so popular, it is backlogged in production and the birthday gift became more and more belated. After multiple delays, L.L. Bean cancelled the order. This would have been merely an inconvenience—except that Barbee's mother died while waiting for the bag.
Barbee initially brushed off the cancellation because, well, it's a tote bag and she can probably just order one. However, as she was grieving the loss of her mother, it hit her that it wasn't just a popular tote bag—it was the last birthday present her mom gave her.
So, she posted a video to TikTok explaining the situation and asking if anyone had one of a similar make and model as the one that her mom had ordered, and if they would be willing to sell it to her if they weren't using it.
@gardenoferin Grief is really weird. And really hard. But if you have an L.L.Bean boat and tote bag that you don’t use I’d love to give it new life. @llbean #llbean #llbeantote #boattote #ironicboatandtote
People flooded the comments with support and also shared their own stories of grief that can manifest in seemingly odd or arbitrary ways.
@yournjg/TikTok
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@gingerchelle/TikTok
Many people were ready to drive to their nearest L.L. Bean to get this woman her tote bag.
@mrmm9999/TikTok
@katherine.wight/TikTok
Her plea did not go unheard. The L.L. Bean TikTok account commented on the video, as well.
@llbean/TikTok
Folks were not surprised by the brand's swift action, as L.L. Bean has long been known as a company that prioritizes customer service.
@grumpykendra/TikTok
Their gesture was appreciated by both Barbee and her audience.
@peachy_keane21/TikTok
@silverwolf_505/TikTok
@meghanfg1/TikTok
@rmh_rios/TikTok
Commenters cried when the first video went up, and were equally as emotional when the follow-up video dropped.
@wtfranay/TikTok
@nobadhabits6/TikTok
@scschulman/TikTok
In a follow-up with People, Barbee said that this was more than just a bag.
"Somebody said that the final gift that my mom got me was the bag...But the final gift was all of this encouragement from people. It's been a light during the hardest couple of weeks of my whole life."
Boat and Totes are available in many different colors, styles, and sizes, but will take a while to get to you as their production process usually isn't a quick one.
@phillytradesman/Bluesky
