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An American woman was so touched by another mom taking the time to educate her children about kids with disabilities that she posted about it on Facebook. The post has since gone viral.
Leah Carroll (31), from Ohio in the US, is used to other kids staring and whispering about her special-needs son, Malachi, who suffered brain damage at birth and is in a wheelchair.
So when two young boys recently spotted Malachi and his mom at fast food restaurant Chick-fil-A and started pointing and asking their mom uncomfortable questions, it wasn’t a new experience for Leah. What was new, was how the other mom handled the situation.
“To the mom of three at Chick-Fil-A: I sensed your panic when your five-year-old son pointed at my son in his wheelchair and shouted, ‘Mom look at that boy!’ ” Leah wrote on Facebook.
“You leaned forward and quietly told him and his three-year-old brother that we don’t say things like that and they shouldn’t point or stare,” she says.
The unknown mom then did something that brought Leah to tears: She walked over to Leah’s table and introduced her two sons to Malachi.
“You brought your boys over to Malachi and said, ‘I bet he would like to know your names!’ As they said their names my little Malachi started grinning from ear to ear and jabbering back to them.
“The joy on his face brought tears to my eyes – he loves kids his age but so many are fearful to come and speak to him.
“Your boys continued to ask questions about his foot braces, his wheelchair, why his legs don’t work, why he holds his mouth open like that,” Leah writes.
Leah then explains how the mom “took the time” to educate her sons at that very moment and tried to help them understand that being “different is okay”.
“Thank you for giving my son a chance to meet your kids. Thank you for being the type of mom who educates your children instead of frantically trying to silence them,” she says.
Leah encourages parents to educate their children about kids with disabilities and to fully embrace them.
“So Chick-Fil-A mom, thank you for raising your children to embrace children like Malachi. And thank you for giving my son something to smile about,” she concludes the post.
Sources: popsugar.com, littlethings.com, usnews.ws
