Viral Video Shows Toddler Unknowingly Hugging Man Who Needed It Most

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Humans are generally good. We want to do good, we want to help, and we want to see others do well for themselves alongside us. When the tables are turned, though, and now we're the ones who need help, it can be immensely difficult to reach out and get the support you need.

Because of this, most people will outsource their grief, throwing themselves into work or other projects so they can act like they're doing just fine despite the struggles they're facing inside. This is when humanity's inherent good can make a huge, huge difference, as one small act can change someone's entire demeanor.

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A Helping Hand

A woman sitting on a bench, being flocked by pigeons that she's feeding.
Pexels / tugay aydın
Pexels / tugay aydın

Expressing kindness as often as possible is a practice we should all be implementing into our daily lives. It costs nothing to pay someone a compliment, treat an employee nicely, ask about someone's day, or provide help when needed. It brightens the world around us and inspires more kindness to be spread.

We never know who around us is in desperate need of a kind act, or how being nice could drastically change their day, which is why we should strive to incorporate it whenever possible.

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It Starts Young

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A group of kids sitting on a stone staircase, smiling and being silly for the camera.
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Pexels / samer daboul
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No one seems to understand this concept better than children. Some guess they even have a heightened sense for spotting those who truly need some kindness thrown their way, a sense that gets lost as we grow up in a harsh world.

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A perfect example of this was captured on a family's Ring doorbell camera, showing a sweet moment between a young boy and a momentary guest that tugged at peoples' heartstrings worldwide.

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Normal Origins

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A screengrab from Sheely's Doorbell camera recording.
Facebook / Lindsey Sheely
Facebook / Lindsey Sheely
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On a very ordinary night, mother Lindsey Sheely ordered a pizza delivery to her home in Rhode Island so that she and her family could have dinner.

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The delivery was rather standard. Sheely opened the door for the driver, Ryan Catterson, and took the box he handed off to her. Sheely then handed him a tip, they exchanged thank yous and goodbyes, then Catterson turned to walk back across the porch to get to his car.

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A Second Farewell

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A screengrab from Sheely's Doorbell camera recording.
Facebook / Lindsey Sheely
Facebook / Lindsey Sheely
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Just as he was stepping past the gate that led to the porch's steps, Sheely's two-year-old son Cohen rushed out the front door.

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He ran to Catterson and reached out to give him a hug, one that Catterson met in kind by leaning down to embrace him. Moments later, Sheely returned outside to grab Cohen and prevent him from bothering the kind driver.

Catterson tells them to enjoy their pizza, and Cohen can be seen blowing kisses as they part ways.

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Sharing Sunshine

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A screengrab from Sheely's Doorbell camera recording.
Facebook / Lindsey Sheely
Facebook / Lindsey Sheely
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This interaction was all captured on Sheely's doorbell camera, which she then uploaded to Facebook.

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"Last night when we got our pizza (and ranch) delivered, Cohen ran out to hug the delivery guy and tried to give him a kiss, too! We thought it was so sweet and funny, then realized that our doorbell might have caught the interaction on camera, and it did!! I hope it gives you a laugh and warms your heart like it did for us," reads the caption.

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Getting The Ball Rolling

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Pexels / Pixabay
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She also posted the video to her Instagram story, where it miraculously found its way to Catterson. "Even better, is that I posted this to my IG stories last night and somehow, it found its way to the man who delivered our pizza! Thank you for being so sweet with our little guy!" she added to the end of her Facebook upload, keeping everyone up to date.

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Little did she know that the story wouldn't end there, and she was about to learn just how impactful her son's kindness was.

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Under The Surface

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A screengrab from Sheely's Doorbell camera recording.
Facebook / Lindsey Sheely
Facebook / Lindsey Sheely
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See, Ryan Catterson had recently and unexpectedly lost his 16-year-old daughter, Alyssa. Losing a child is an unbelievable tragedy. There's no imagining what sort of grief he was shouldering during that late-night shift delivering food for others, so sweet-hearted Cohen rushing out to hug him was an extremely welcome gesture.

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In another update to her post, Sheely explained that she and Catterson had been in contact since he saw the video, with Ryan having told her all that happened leading up to the captured moment.

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It Was Meant To Be

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A screengrab from Sheely's Doorbell camera recording.
Facebook / Lindsey Sheely
Facebook / Lindsey Sheely
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"Through [talking], we found out that Ryan unexpectedly lost his daughter recently, and that hug from Cohen was a little blessing from God," she wrote, "I believe in divine appointments and know that Ryan was the one to deliver our pizza for a reason."

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Alyssa's family had set up a GoFundMe at the time to help with funeral expenses and travel for family members to attend. Thanks to the virality of this sweet video, they raised over $30,000.

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A Cherished Moment

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Last night when we got our pizza (and ranch) delivered, Cohen ran out to hug the delivery guy and tried to give him a kiss, too! 😂 We thought it was so sweet and funny, then realized that our doorbell might have caught the interaction on camera, and it did!! I hope it gives you a laugh and warms your heart like it did for us 🥰❤️ Even better, is that I posted this to my IG stories last night and somehow, it found it’s way to the man who delivered our pizza! Thank you, Ryan, for being so sweet with our little guy!Update: little did we know what Cohen’s hug to this stranger would mean. Someone showed Ryan the video I posted to my IG, so he messaged me, and I found him on FB so he could share the video. Through this, we found out that Ryan unexpectedly lost his daughter recently, and that hug from Cohen was a little blessing from God. I believe in divine appointments and know that Ryan was the one to deliver our pizza for a reason. If you feel inclined, please consider donating to his GoFundMe to help with funeral costs. My heart is so heavy for this family 😔 anything to help lighten the burden, I know, will be greatly appreciated ❤️https://www.gofundme.com/f/alyssa039s-servicefamily-travel-expenses?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1Thank you to RI Home Security for hooking us up with this doorbell that allowed us to capture this moment!!❤️

Posted by Lindsey Sheely on Sunday, February 16, 2020
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Catterson also spoke out about what that moment meant to him. "After losing my daughter this past week, it touched me because it was like she was there. It really just meant a lot to me. It's going to be tough not going to be able to hug her again," he explained, "A lot of people are commenting that [the interaction] may have been her looking out for me. Those words mean something. Maybe she's there."

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Alyssa's mother, Danielle McCord, also commented on the video, saying, "It's so easy to miss people and their internal pain. Even with our daughter, we didn't know her pain. I can't help but be grateful that someone saw his pain and could be there for him."

Catterson said he would treasure that moment forever, just as he does with memories of his daughter.

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All Benefits

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A young boy standing on a beach, waving a large purple flag that says 'kindness' on it.
Pexels / Ron Lach
Pexels / Ron Lach
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This story is such a beautiful reminder that there's so much good to still be had in the world. Empathy is not as rare as we're led to believe, especially within the pure hearts of children, who sense far more than we're capable of knowing or able to remember from our own childhoods.

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It also shows that one small act of kindness can mean the absolute world to someone, as you never truly know what anyone else is going through in this life.

If we all adopted a little more child-like gentleness and desire to do good, we could make the world a better place one gesture at a time.

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