Kids all over the world get excited at the idea of meeting Santa Claus. Misty Wolf worried that her son’s disabilities would stop him from enjoying this tradition.
Matthew Foster, Wolf’s son, lives with autism and blindness.
Naturally, his family goes above and beyond to ensure that he has a happy life. But Matthew’s conditions sometimes make it hard for him to interact with others.
One day, Wolf and Matthew went to the mall, where Santa was meeting kids.
Wolf knew that Matthew desperately wanted to meet Santa. So she and Matthew got in line.
Wolf started to worry that the man playing Santa would struggle to adapt to her son’s conditions.
When it was Matthew’s turn, Wolf mentioned to Santa that her son was blind and autistic. Santa smiled and responded with a, “Say no more.”
Santa got off of his chair and sat on the floor next to Matthew. Then Santa let Matthew feel his coat, his beard and his hat.
Some people may have taken exception to this. But this Santa just wanted a little boy to have an amazing experience.
Then Santa asked Matthew if there was anything else that he would like to feel. Matthew responded, “Your eyes that twinkle.”
So Santa let Matthew put his hands on his eyelids. This Santa’s eyes may not have twinkled. But Matthew still appreciated it.
And then Santa got another idea. He asked Matthew if he had ever felt a reindeer.
Matthew told Santa that he hadn’t. So he led the child to the reindeer at the corner of the grotto. Soon, Matthew was feeling this reindeer’s antlers.
Everyone watching this scene was heart warmed. The man playing Santa had really gone above and beyond for Matthew.
He could have just sat Matthew on his lap. But he realized that for Matthew to have a proper Christmas experience, he needed to do more.
By the time that the meeting was over, Wolf was crying.
“It was like Matthew seeing Santa.” – Misty Wolf.
A news team then heard about this event. They tracked down the mall Santa and asked him about meeting Matthew.
The man playing Santa was modest. To him, it seemed like the obvious thing to do, as Matthew doesn’t see the world in the same way as everyone else.
“You relate to the child and what the child needs.” – Santa.
Wolf also posted about her son’s experience to Facebook. The post and its pictures soon went viral. To date, they have gained almost 250,000 reactions. They also have more than 107,000 shares and 20,000 comments.
People have been saying things like this:
Of course, Matthew’s meeting with Santa didn’t happen this year. Sadly, this year, children won’t get to meet up with Santa in the usual way. Instead, they’ll have to see him through plexiglass. This is for an important reason. And the people playing Santa are surely working hard to make the children have special and memorable experiences.
But the good news is that next year kids should be able to sit on Santa’s lap once more.
We can all look forward to a normal Christmas next year. That also includes families gathering in large numbers.
Let’s all stay safe and stay distant this Christmas and look forward to a brighter future.
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