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By Daniella Gray
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A deaf boy has melted the hearts of millions online in footage showing him meeting his baby sister for the first time.
The TikTok video, posted by his mom, Mackenzie Molina, captures Judah looking at his newborn sister, who is just two days old.
With curiosity and affection, the 17-month-old looks at Jovi and mouths the word "hi," and people across the internet were deeply moved.
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"You can see in the video he is looking at his sister's face for her reaction. He voices 'hi,' the first word we ever heard him say," Molina, a mom of four, told Newsweek.
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What made the moment even more poignant for her and her husband was that, at the time, they hadn't yet discovered that Judah was profoundly deaf.
As babies grow, parents might notice sign of hearing impairment between six to 12 months. For example, a baby who doesn't respond to loud noises, isn't startled by sudden sounds or fails to turn toward voices might have a hearing issue.
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There are several reasons why a child's hearing impairment may go unnoticed until they're older including mild or progressive hearing loss, compensatory behavior (some children like Judah may respond visually to their environment) or late-onset hearing loss.
Judah, described by his mom as one of the most intuitive, sensitive and loving kids she knows, melted hearts all over the internet.
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"You can hear us (my husband and I) 'aww'. We were shocked to hear him say something, but not surprised at all that he loved his sister," Molina said.
Captioned: "It was love at first sight," Molina's clip has gained 4 million views since it was posted on September 18 with over 630,000 comments.
"I watched this so many times and cried harder each time. This is so beautiful, thank you for sharing," one TikTok user wrote, and someone else called the touching moment "so precious."
Another shared that their grandson, who has Down syndrome, is two years older than his sister and she's already learning how to sign.
Molina told Newsweek that the response had been extremely moving. "People have been moved to tears. Lots of people are saying they hear my daughter say 'hi' back, which is so sweet. If you listen closely, you can hear it."
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