Daniel, a resident of Nottingham, England, is an autistic teen. Like any other autistic child, Daniel too, loved to be lonely.
But one day something wierd happened which his family least expected. Kevin Harrison, father of Daniel was surprised, when he learnt about the two wishes Daniel had penned during one of his sessions at his special needs school.
His first wish was to learn to drive and surprisingly, the second wish was to make some friends. It was surprising for his family because all along they thought that Daniel did not understand what friendship really was!
Just like any other doting father, Kevin wanted to fulfill his son’s wishes. As Daniel’s 15th birthday was approaching, Kevin reached out to his Twitter handle to post an emotional note about the wishes of his son. All he was seeking was some internet love for his wonderful autistic son on his birthday. But another surprise was awaiting Daniel’s family.
The tweet went viral almost instantly and people connected themselves with Daniel. Thousands of people liked, shared and commented. They showered him with birthday messages filled with love and blessings.
Daniel’s my son. Profoundly Autistic. Hasn’t one friend. It’s his birthday today. In his ECHP he wrote that his two wishes were to learn to drive and make friends 😣 Please wish him a happy birthday. Please show him you care. Please share. ##happybirthday #autism #rt pic.twitter.com/Psu97TSj6g
— Kev & Daniel’s #autism journey (& Bruce 😉) (@kevharrison_) September 29, 2021
Some people posted the photos of their own autistic children while some others posted cheerful pictures of their pets. Celebrities like Luke Skywalker also known as Mark Hamill, Russell Crowe, Sharon Stone, Ariel Winter and singer Liz Phair were among the many others who sent messages to Daniel.
For my friend Daniel: 🎂 pic.twitter.com/gBIzuEb9Sk
— Mark Hamill (@HamillHimself) September 29, 2021
Happy Birthday Daniel
— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) September 29, 2021
Singing you the birthday song! HBD Daniel pic.twitter.com/PpOGBVP4m8
— Liz Phair (@PhizLair) September 29, 2021
Some people sent real gifts to him via mail and others tried in their own way to fulfill his wish to drive. Automotive photographer and performance car reviewer Kurt Bradley even shared a point – of – video with Daniel behind the wheel virtually!
Happy Birthday, Daniel! Here are some @SharkWerks GT4 noises, with me ripping through the Angeles Crest tunnels. Maybe you’ll get to drive a fun @Porsche some time! pic.twitter.com/O6KvBfjAtN
— Kurt Bradley (@kurtbradley) September 30, 2021
The very next day Kevin’s tweet about Daniel and his wishes was the top trending topic in US. Kevin”s tweet was nothing but a small effort from a father who wanted to fill his son’s lonely world with colours of friendship and love of people. A world where his autistic son learnt that he was not lonely and that he would achieve his two wishes to learn to drive and to make friends.
The response that the tweet gathered proved that there are a lot of beautiful and lovely people in this world. They all want to be liked and loved. All are connected no matter how disconnected we all feel.
Kevin Harrison always felt alone but he learnt that they were countless families who felt the same.
“You’re not alone,” he said. “Just simply that people do love you.”
