A mystery stranger’s note about “special children” and an additional thoughtful gesture moved a mom to tears, and the handwritten missive has since gone viral.
North Carolina mom Ashley England’s eight-year-old son Riley was out with the family dining at the Stag-N-Doe pizza restaurant Friday when the boy — who suffers from a severe form of epilepsy — began to get agitated.
England didn’t expect the note about “special children” as she coped with a situation all parents have likely experienced, with Riley rapidly becoming frustrated and acting out.
Ashley explains:
“He threw the phone and started screaming… The past few weeks have been very hard and trying for us – especially with public outings. Riley was getting loud and hitting the table and I know it was aggravating to some people.”
If you’re a parent, you probably know exactly what it’s like to be balancing a noisy child , who is unhappy, and the people around you, who are also less than pleased.
What England didn’t expect was not only a lack of condemnation from other diners, but a small act of generosity with a big impact.
A waitress, who was as moved as England would soon be, passed the mom a note from an anonymous diner. It simply read:
“God only gives special children to special people.” Like the server, the small note of encouragement made England tear up, and she says:
“To have someone do that small act towards us shows that some people absolutely understand what we are going through and how hard it is to face the public sometimes. They made me cry, blessed me more than they know – I felt like out of all the rude negative comments that we are faced with – these outweighs them. The people who care!”
Along with the “special children” note of encouragement, the mystery diner paid England’s tab. Awwww.
