Five years after a soldier was given a gift that raised his spirit during days of war, Jackson Smith paid back his best friend Brian.

Both good deeds were made possible by NFL quarterback Drew Brees, who, at the time, had just won the Super Bowl but was happy to send some down-home love to a New Orleans Marine.

The photo above (right) was sent to Smith at the front lines, showing the star athlete holding a life-sized cutout his picture.

"When I saw that picture, I cried my eyes out. I felt that Brian had pulled off the greatest act of friendship in the history of Mardi Gras,' wrote Jackson Smith. "At a time in my life when I knew little beyond doubt and exhaustion, his gesture brought me through. I believed that I could never repay him or Drew Brees for what they had done for me."

In the end, he did repay the favor to Brian, with the help of the same New Orleans Saints star QB.

(READ the essay by Smith in the Washington Post)

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