Michael Clyne is a 10-year-old autistic boy who never talks to strangers.
So when he recently broke his silence and told Saint Nick what he wanted for Christmas, his parents were shocked.
The youngster was at a holiday event in Bethpage, New York when he reportedly climbed into Santa’s lap and said ‘apple pie ginger cat’.
The toy he is referring to is a wooden cat-shaped pull toy that was discontinued by the London manufacturer a decade ago. Michael had become obsessed with the little trinket after seeing a picture of it on the internet. He even pulled up pictures of the ginger cat on Google Image so Santa could see what he was talking about.
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His family was so surprised that he whispered in Kris Kringle’s ear, they started searching high and low for the ginger cat.
“He made his first official request to Santa Claus, so it was like okay, this has to happen,” Michael’s aunt told CBS New York in the video below. “We have to figure this out.”
“When he showed this to Santa, to me it was like he thinks Santa is the solution,” said Michael’s mom.
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A voracious social media search ended with a toy company employee in California telling Michael’s family that he happened to have one ginger cat toy in his possession – and he would be happy to send it their way before Christmas.
Michael’s mom attributes the fateful string of events as a bit of modern Christmas magic.
“I believe you can never stop believing in Santa,” Michael’s mother said.
(WATCH the video below)
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