Her 5-year-old autistic daughter utters her first ever word: Mom bursts into tears
A child's first words are important, and parents often take tremendous pride when they hear their child say "mom" or "dad" for the first time. Parents of children with non-verbal autism, however, already know that their children may never speak and, consequently, many mothers and fathers resign themselves to the idea of never hearing those sweet words. This may be why Briana Blankenship burst into tears while she was waiting in line at a McDonald's drive-in, waiting for her turn: her daughter Taylor, 5 years old, said the word "mom" for the first time . Actually, it was her first word ever, as doctors had assured Briana that the little girl would never speak due to her autism spectrum disorder.
via Facebook / Briana Blankenship
Briana Blankenship was in the car with her daughter Taylor sitting in the back seat as she was waiting in line to order food from McDonald's when she first heard her child talking. "Ma-ma", announced the little girl in a sort of chant and Briana couldn't believe it: "Mama! Well done darling!", we hear her scream of joy in the video. Taylor giggles happily as she realizes that her mother is delighted with her every time she hears her utter that magic word.
Briana, as the mother of a non-verbal autistic child, does everything, together with her husband, to offer her every possible and imaginable stimulus in order to help her in the development of language. At her school they have special programs and even take her to gymnastics, an activity that has allowed her to stop walking on her toes, a tendency that many autistic children have.
The "miracle" happened just as Briana was accompanying her daughter to a gym class: "We were running late and Taylor still had to eat, so I decided to go to the nearest drive-in to get her something I knew she would actually eat. We rarely eat in fast food restaurants and when she realized we were about to get her favorite food, french fries, she started getting excited and giggling in the back seat. That's when I heard her say it. I turned my head and asked her: "Did you just say mamma?" And she looked at me and said it again." It was then that, in tears, Briana grabbed her cell phone and filmed the extremely moving scene. When it was her turn to order, her eyes were so full of tears that she could barely see the cashier. She didn't know how to explain her joy to her: her daughter had spoken to her for the first time!
Before the gym class, Briana only had time to call her husband and her mother, to give them this good news. So, without wasting time, she posted the wonderful video of her daughter on her Facebook page and tagged her family. It goes without saying that her video has gone viral and that many users who are in similar situations have contacted her very happy and full of hope for the future of their own children.
Here's the video where Taylor says "mom" for the first time:
A scene that, just looking at it, brings joy and belief!
