Back in 2016, an elderly man and a young girl went viral — for a simple hug in the grocery store.
Norah Wood was four years old when she went shopping with her mother one day. As they passed an elderly man, she suddenly greeted him. Then, to everyone’s surprise, she demanded a hug.
The man’s name was Dan Peterson.
He was happy to oblige.
“I said, ‘A hug?’” said Peterson. “‘Absolutely.’”
The moment touched Peterson’s heart.
It turned out his wife had recently passed away. Since her death, he’d been struggling to feel normal again. He was buried in grief.
“And I said, ‘You don’t know — this is the first time for quite a while that I’ve been this happy,” he said.
Norah’s mother, Tara Wood, said he began to cry as he talked to Norah.
She recalled that Norah said something strange the day before they met Dan.
“She went on to explain that she has a soft spot for mature folks,” Tara wrote in an article for The Today Show. “I like old peoples the best ‘cos they walk slow like I walk slow and they has soft skin like I has soft skin. They all gonna die soon so I’m gonna love ‘em all up before they is died.” Tara added, “Sure it got kinda weird and dark at the end there, but I liked where her heart was.”
As it so happened, the day they met Dan was Norah’s fourth birthday.
She excitedly told him about her cupcakes and the special day. Then she asked her mom to take a picture of them together.
As they left, Tara thanked Dan for giving them his time.
“No, thank YOU,” he said. “This has been the best day I’ve had in a long time. You’ve made me so happy, Miss Norah.”
They left the store, but it wasn’t the last time they would be seeing one another.
Dan soon became a regular part of Norah’s life. He attended her kindergarten graduation. She, her mother, and her sister also regularly visited him. He showed her the vegetables in his garden. And of course, there were always lots of hugs.
“It was the first thing she did when we walked in, it was the last thing she did when we left,” said Norah’s mother. “I think it was just humanity at its best — to love and to be loved.”
They even started a Facebook page called Norah and Mr. Dan where they documented the pictures of the times they spent together — and of course, all the hugs.
People all over the world responded to the story, sending letters of appreciation and support.
Dan passed away on February 10, 2020, at the age of 86. Norah, now 8 years old, attended the memorial service with her mother. After seeing the little girl’s tears, people also sent her condolences for the loss of her friend.
Even though Dan is gone, his last years were brightened by one little girl who was determined to get a hug. See some of this beautiful story by watching the video below.
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
