Her wish came true

When my daughter went right up to a lady she didn’t know and patted her giant teddy bear at The Show last night, I jumped into smile an apology and pull her back. My daughter is on the autism spectrum and struggles to see things from other people’s point of view, so didn’t realise that she was being a bit rude.

The young woman was very sweet about it and let her pat the bear for a bit, and then we left to get ourselves some dinner. We were amazed a few minutes later to find that the woman had sought us out and was offering to give my daughter the bear, such a generous offer that I tried to refuse, but she insisted, saying that otherwise she would be giving it to Goodwill. I was floored by her generosity (those huge bears are expensive). My daughter keeps saying to me that her “wish came true” when she was given the bear, and that she wishes she had a way to contact the lady to say thank you again. I’m making this post public in the hope that it may reach that kind woman. By giving away your teddy bear, you made a big impression on my daughter about the impact that selfless generosity and kindness have on others. You’ve given us a concrete example that we will discuss often as we help her to learn about empathy – a skill that is so vital, but difficult to teach when it doesn’t come naturally. Thank you so very much. – Roslyn