Losing a loved one is the hardest thing we will ever experience in this life, but we have no choice but to go forward in honor of their memories. As human beings, it is our responsibility to console our family and even our acquaintances in the darkest times possible. That’s exactly what one neighbor did when he noticed his elderly friend had lost her partner, he rushed to her side to hold her in a tearful embrace that went viral.

Sometimes hugging someone and giving them a shoulder to cry on is all we can do.

Compassionate man runs out of his yard to console his neighbor who is grief-stricken by her husbands passing

Aldon O’neill Ward III lives in Mobile, Alabama, where for the past 10 years he’s always known two elderly neighbors to walk by in matching jogging suites giving him jolly “hellos.” In a recent Facebook post he explains:

“Since 2011 I’ve seen an older couple walking the neighborhood every morning and evening. Matching windbreaker outfits, large white new balance sneakers and a stick in hand.

Every day, they’d wave and blow kisses at the dogs. Always saying what a beautiful day it was even if they were walking in the rain without an umbrella.” Reads the beginning of the post.

As the post goes on, Aldon gives us a glimpse into the personality of the friendly couple

In the Facebook post, he tells an old story about the man, his wife, and their amazing character:

“As I passed them en route to my driveway, they turned and looked at me with huger smiles on their faces. The man motioned for me to turn up the music just as I was reaching for the knob to turn it down. The huge mud tires whirred slowly to a stop On the concrete. After getting out of the jeep while they walked by the front yard, the man exclaimed ‘Sure is wonderful to hear stuff like that being played by a young’n!’ As he swung his wife’s hand up and over her head twirling her in her oversized all-white NewBalance walking shoes.” Aldon writes about the couple.

The post then takes a heartbreaking turn

“A windbreaker suit swooshes slowly down the street below. Alone, the woman approaches. I wave, she waves. I exclaim in a joking manner, ‘where’s the better half?’

Her stride slowed and she began to shake her head. She looked up at me through her large blinder style sunglasses and with a trembling voice said ‘I don’t have him anymore.'”

That’s when Aldon instinctively dropped what he was doing to go and console the woman in pain

Aldon’s security cameras caught the kind-hearted man dropping his hose to the ground before running to the woman as she wept.

“My heart sank.

I rushed down to the street already feeling tight in my own chest. ‘Ma’am?’ I said, as I approached her.

She turned and with tears streaming from behind her large sunglasses, not another word was spoken, we hugged. Big hugged. Like she was my mom or my grandmother.

She sobbed into my chest for a moment and said ‘I’m just trying do the things that we used to so I still feel like he’s around.

I needed that hug more than you know, thank you for all the music.'” Said the Facebook post.

Aldon personified how we all should treat our neighbors during times of loss

At that moment, Aldon did the most important thing we can do in life. Which is to open our hearts to the people who need all the love they can get during the most painful times. To see the compassionate gesture, watch the video below.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

Source: Facebook, Sunny Skyz, Shareably