Girl With Autism Had a Major Breakthrough Thanks to 1 Stranger at the Park

After picking his kids up from school, a dad decided to take advantage of the great weather and stop by a park with his little ones. Typically, his sons run around and his little girl wanders on her own, exploring whatever catches her interest.

However, yesterday was different because a little girl approached this man and asked if she could play with his daughter. "Normally, Arwen ignores people she doesn't know. I told her that Arwen has autism and she might play, but she might not," the anonymous dad shared on Reddit. "I told the girl that Arwen doesn't talk, and that if she didn't want to play it wasn't the girl's fault . . . 'It's not that she doesn't like you, she just isn't comfortable with new people.'"

This dad shared that he expected Arwen to ignore Ava, but to his surprise, they began to play together. He described how Arwen followed the kind child to different playground equipment and when she went down the slides first, she would look back to make sure that her new friend was coming.

"This won't seem like a big deal to most people. You have to understand that Arwen is 12 years old, and this is the first time she has ever interacted with a child that she doesn't see every day," he wrote. "She even ignores most of her classmates. This was a huge deal for her."

When it was time to go, he asked Arwen if she wanted to say goodbye, and what happened next had him, the teacher on the playground, and Arwen's mom tearing up. "Arwen hugged her. That never happens," he explained. "She doesn't even initiate hugs with people she knows."

This dad wasn't just in awe over his daughter's response to her new friend, he was equally blown away by Ava and wants her parents, whoever they are, to know what an incredible child they've raised. "Both the teacher and I thanked her for being nice to Arwen, and she looked at us like she had no idea what we were talking about," he wrote. "It was obvious that it never occurred to her to treat Arwen differently than any other kid. I think that was what got me the most. I never thought I'd get to see her make a friend."