Born at 25 weeks, Baby Arrow, a 'micro-preemie,' remained in the hospital after her birth where her father is signing to her to convey how much he loves her.
In a heartwarming video, a father introduces himself in sign language to his newborn daughter, who was born deaf. Born at 25 weeks, Baby Arrow, a 'micro-preemie,' remained in the hospital after her birth. Her mother, Teresa Justice, says that ASL (American Sign Language) is the primary language spoken in her family. Her husband and now dad, Jimmy Justice, is also deaf. The viral video, making its rounds on the internet, shows Jimmy telling his daughter, Arrow, how beautiful and adorable she is and how much he loves her, according to USA Today. No matter how awry things become, a father's love for his daughter is strong enough to break even the coldest of hearts.
The video was also posted on Reddit that garnered a lot of attention. "Is she already giving him a whatever dad eye-roll? Yet, he persists. These two are going to be great," commented u/AsanoSokato. "Older babies are empowered by learning baby sign language. They can ask for what they need. He and she will always be able to converse. This is so sweet!" added u/doveup. Even on Instagram, the dad-daughter duo was showered with love. "Absolutely precious. What a loving video and message. ❤️ Bless Baby arrow growing stronger every day," wrote @jennymckinneymua. "As a sign language interpreter and a mother to a 29-weeker, this made my heart sing. I love seeing Dad sign to baby Arrow 💜💜💜 penned @duedatesaredumb.
Moments such as these make you grateful for having parents who love you. They are always there for you, from potty training and dropping you off on your first day at school. These milestones never fail to amaze you as a parent. But for Zachary, a father who is deaf, seeing his daughter Madison interpreting for him was something he was not prepared for. As reported by Parents, the adorable moment was posted to Zachary's TikTok, under the name @oursignedworld. In the video, Madison drops the packets of Scotch Brite and signs "baby crying," to her dad. She points to the sound that her dad cannot hear and he repeats it back to her.
"She dropped what was in her hands, signed 'baby crying' and pointed! This was a WOW moment," Zachary wrote in the caption. The cute exchange made TikTokers swoon in the comments. "Wow! She not only signed what she was hearing she recognized that you couldn’t hear it also. Incredible," commented @itsme6160. "Smart little girl, she’s learning 2 languages together, connecting the two languages as she interacts in her world. Super toddler!" wrote @thatsaturnchic2400. "Not her serving the tea via ASL 😭💅🏾💕," joked @KosmicKiaa. "Everyone should encourage their children to learn sign language 🥰 it is very helpful for them in their younger stages AND it’s useful for people," added @nakitaaa.
According to LeadwithLanguages, ASL is the most widely used language in the United States and the fourth-most studied language at American universities. Almost 35 states have recognized ASL as a modern language for public schools and many colleges and universities offer ASL classes. Approximately, there are 250,000 – 500,000 ASL users in the United States and Canada, most of whom use ASL as their primary language, like Jimmy and Zachary.