Daughter surprises mom with visit to 'Sesame Street': 'This is the face of pure, unadulterated joy'
The place where everything’s A-OK and friendly neighbors are there for you to meet left one teacher speechless and shedding tears of joy — all because her daughter taught her how to get to Sesame Street.
Sesame Street, a PBS staple since 1970, is the street that a lot of us grew up on. In 1996, a survey showed that 95 percent of American preschoolers watched the show. In 2008, it was estimated that 77 million Americans had watched it as kids.
For many people, Sesame Street not only taught them the ABCs or how to count, but it also about kindness and how to respond to painful, sometimes scary, situations. The Muppets never talked down to their audience, and tackled difficult issues like death (R.I.P. Mr. Hooper), the HIV crisis (Kami was the first puppet to address HIV), and even the tragedy of 9/11.
It’s an educational show that many should be proud to support — but one teacher was so moved by her Sesame Street visit, she was reduced to tears.
Maddy Cunningham shared on Twitter that she was taking her mother to visit Sesame Street, promising that it would be “the cutest thing you’ll see all week.”
I didn’t tell her what we were doing/where we were going until we were in the elevator. pic.twitter.com/BO9gMzMQ0G
— Maddy, but spooky (@maddycunningham) October 28, 2018
They took photos and even got to step onto the legendary stage.
BUT THEN… we walked into the studios and I honestly thought my mom might pass out from excitement. pic.twitter.com/zTgQNaJxoa
— Maddy, but spooky (@maddycunningham) October 28, 2018
“I’ve never seen her more overwhelmed in my entire life [to be honest],” Maddy wrote. “This is the face of pure, unadulterated joy.”
Maddy’s mom, an educator, even got to sit in Big Bird’s nest.
Everyone was so kind and she even got to sit in Big Bird’s nest! pic.twitter.com/uVX5wvWiPT
— Maddy, but spooky (@maddycunningham) October 28, 2018
Meeting Ernie rendered her speechless.
There were lots of tears and very few words. My mom was TOTALLY speechless. pic.twitter.com/vY2FxbYCFI
— Maddy, but spooky (@maddycunningham) October 28, 2018
She became a monster sandwich.
BUT THEN THE MONSTERS KEPT COMING. pic.twitter.com/Fm1hQxYxCr
— Maddy, but spooky (@maddycunningham) October 28, 2018
Then she met Rosita, the show’s first bilingual puppet, who wore a pig nose to pretend to be one of the Three Little Pigs. The moment Maddy’s mom loved the most was when Rosita told her how much Sesame Street values teachers.
But the moment I think my mom loved the most was when Rosita hugged her and told her how much Sesame Street loves teachers. pic.twitter.com/ZGrZDu01RA
— Maddy, but spooky (@maddycunningham) October 28, 2018
“So you’re a teacher?” Rosita asked. “Thank you for watching too. We love teachers!”
Maddy Cunningham did not immediately respond to Yahoo Lifestyle’s requests for comment, but we love teachers too!
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