Visiting Santa is a rite of passage for kids and parents this time of year. And for TikTok mom Cassie (@cassandrabotnick), Santa's patience and understanding while meeting her daughter with autism, Luna, brought a flood of tears. "She was SO excited to see him 🥹❤️🎄 #autismacceptance #autismawareness #christmas," she captioned the post.
The video shows an excited Luna approaching Santa, but backing up with some apprehension as she works her way up to sitting in his lap. Cassie offers Luna an augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) device, a tablet that helps those with speech or language impairments to communicate.
Santa says to Luna, "Come here! Ho ho ho!", dancing and putting his hand up for a high-five. She moves closer to him and they high-five--although she isn't totally comfortable to sit in his lap yet. Rather than expressing frustration or becoming impatient, he continues to talk with Luna to put her at ease--making eye contact with Cassie to also reassure her he understands Luna's needs. "I like your shirt! Are you very merry with your curly hair? Do you want to tell Santa what you want for Christmas?" he asks.
Slowly, Luna inches towards him and finally jumps into his lap, as Santa pats her back and reassures her all is well. "Good job!" Cassie emotionally says to her.
"Santa immediately realized my daughter needed extra support and looked at me and said 'don't worry, there's no rush' 😭🥹," she wrote in the video.
The precious clip captured the hearts of TikTokers, leading to thousands of sweet comments. "Inclusivity seriously can be this simple. I love he did it without hesitation, wish more people could do this," one wrote. Another chimed in, "Now that’s a 'real' Santa!! 🥰"
The Santa's calm demeanor also stood out. "I appreciate how he went at her speed and didn’t rush the visit. Should be that way always. Merry Christmas 🎄," one wrote. And another added, "The pat pats to slowly get her used to his touch 🥹🥹🥹."
The video also united other parents of children with autism, and they opened up about their Santa visit stories. "I love how caring he was, it means so much to us autism Moms ❤️," one wrote. And another mom shared, "My son has autism, too. We went to see Santa when he was about 4. Santa got down in the floor with Harper bc he could tell he didn’t want to sit in his lap! It was the sweetest!"
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Photo by krakenimages on Unsplash
Another autism mom shared a not-so-nice experience in the TikTok comments. "More Santas like this please! My son was stimming so hard yesterday so excited, and Santa kept shouting at him to wait for him to speak to his sister first and tutting at him calling him naughty! It was the first time he’s ever been able to speak to him himself too. He couldn’t tell what was going on and came away saying Santa was the best, but my mama heart still hurts! Oh and told him to stay still when he was jumping from foot to foot!"
Unfortunately, not all Santa's are as understanding or patient--remember the Santa in A Christmas Story? Or Tim Allen as a newly appointed Santa in The Santa Clause?
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In contrast, there have been a number of more compassionate Santa's--like Santa Claus in Miracle on 34th Street, which the Santa from this TikTok got comparisons to. "This reminds me of Miracle on 34th St when Santa begins speaking Dutch to the little girl. Santa did so well!" one wrote.
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This kind and gentle Santa is helping restore the reputation of his cranky cohorts and spreading Christmas cheer.
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