Considering the family photo this woman found in the picture frame aisle, you’d think Walmart was a thrift store.
When you purchase a photo frame, it may include stock photos of your family, people, or pets inside the frame to show you what the frame will look like with a real photo in it. It’s a common practice.
But this woman noticed that one of the frames in the Walmart aisle looked a little strange.
Jasmine Austin (@paintingandallthatjas), an art teacher and artist based in Dallas, Texas, said in a viral TikTok video, “These photos are weirdly special, and you don’t usually see these types of photos when you look inside the frame. I can’t see it,” he says. .
When she turns the camera, viewers see a dark brown frame filled with family photos of black families.
“What I thought was, somebody left a picture of a family in the store. Lord, they left it in the store,” Jas says. “Who are these people?”
This frame was clearly not a product, as it did not have a step on the back like the other frames, nor did it have a barcode or price tag.
“This was in someone’s house. So did you all leave pictures in the store?” Jas asked.
Inside the frame are at least six yellowed photographs, including one of a man holding a rabbit and another of a couple sitting drinking two beers.
But the best part of this video is the backstory Jas creates for each photo.
In a photo of a man lounging on a chair in the living room, she says her Uncle Leroy from Mississippi just came to say “hi.” In another photo, Jas and a group of women say it’s their first baby shower in their backyard. Also, what about the one with the guy holding the liquor bottle? Jas suspects the photo was taken during a New Year’s Eve gathering.
It’s unclear how the filled picture frame ended up in the Walmart aisle. Perhaps someone took the frame away in search of another frame of the same size or a frame for an individual photo. Maybe it’s a prank by the manufacturer (though it’s unlikely).
People encouraged Jas to buy a frame and look for her family, but she said she didn’t. One, she couldn’t buy the frame because it wasn’t for sale, and two, she didn’t want the person to go back looking for it and not find it.
If your family is watching (or reading), the frame is at the Walmart in Dallas. Jas urged viewers to find their families, and many viewers did so in the comments section.
@paintingandallthatjas Who are these people?
♬ Original song – Jas
As of Wednesday morning, the video had more than 700,000 views and more than 4,000 comments.
“Oh, Torah! Aunt Pearl is looking for that frame now!” one guessed.
“Oh really she gave them the name and the situation,” said a commenter.
“You named them and they’re your family now,” another wrote.
Jas told The Daily Dot in an Instagram direct message that several people have claimed to be her family, but most of them don’t seem to be true.
“People said I should have taken it or brought it to customer service, but if they remembered something they forgot, I wanted to leave it in the exact same place. ” she said. “A few people messaged me and said it was their family. Some seemed serious, others were clearly having fun, but other than that there were no updates.”
*First published: January 3, 2024 12:00 PM CST
Stacey Fernandez
Stacey Fernandez is a freelance writer, project manager, and communications specialist. She worked at the Texas Tribune, the Dallas Morning News, and was in charge of social media at the New York Educational Trust. Her favorite hobby is finding hidden gems in her thrift store. She loves good audio books and is also a chocolate lover.