Copyright newsweek
A California mom had gone for a bite to eat with her deaf 4-year-old son when he did something that caught her completely off guard. Callie Foster and her husband live in California with their son Luca. “He’s the light of our lives—curious, funny, and so full of personality,” Foster said. “He was diagnosed with hearing loss when he was about six weeks old, and like many hearing parents, we didn’t know where to start.” The CDC estimates that around three in every 1,000 babies in the U.S. will be born with a detectable level of hearing loss in one or both ears. Foster can still remember her initial reaction to receiving the news and the mix of “love, fear, confusion, and determination” that she felt in that moment. “From the very beginning, we promised ourselves one thing: that Luca would always have language and access, and that we would meet him where he is,” she said. For Foster and her family, that meant learning American Sign Language (ASL), a sign language used by somewhere between 500,000 to 2 million adults in the U.S., according to a study by the Gallaudet Research Institute. Foster and her husband began learning ASL soon after their son’s diagnosis. “It wasn’t easy,” she said. “We stumbled, we learned slowly, and we still are learning but every sign has built a bridge between us.” Learning ASL hasn’t just helped them to connect more as a family, it’s also helped them to establish bonds and form new friendships within the deaf community. “We’ve learned so much from deaf adults and families who have shown us what true access, culture, and identity look like,” Foster said. “We don’t take that for granted.” Luca was asked his name. That sense of community shone in the moment Foster captured on camera during the trip out for food with Luca. “The day in the video was simple but profound,” she said. “Luca was at Chick-fil-A, and when the cashier, Moises, asked his name.” In the video, Moises can be seen asking Luca using ASL. Without missing a beat, Luca responded, signing his name for the very first time. “He proudly finger-spelled it all by himself,” Foster said. “Watching him do that, completely unprompted, stopped me in my tracks. For us, that moment represented years of learning and advocating and hoping—all condensed into this tiny, beautiful act of self-expression.” There was something else about that interaction that made it extra special for Foster and her family. “What made it even more meaningful was the cashier meeting him with kindness and understanding, signing back and communicating with him in his language,” she said. “That’s the world I hope Luca grows up in—one where people meet him halfway.” Foster posted the poignant exchange to her TikTok thelacouple. It went viral, amassing 4.2 million views and over 1,500 comments, including a response from Moises himself, writing under the handle sm_19620. “I learned ASL when I was in high school and I’ve tried my best to use those skills when I have the opportunity to do so,” he wrote. “It’s the small things that really do matter for people and I’m glad I was there to make Luca’s day special.” While it’s an undoubtedly heartwarming moment, Foster hopes those watching the clip see the deeper significance of Luca and Moises’ exchange. “I hope they see the power of language, the importance of accessibility, and the beauty of learning a few signs to connect with someone new,” she said. “And for hearing parents who might just be starting their journey—I hope they see that learning ASL doesn’t take anything away from your child’s world, it only expands it.”
