If you haven't called your parents lately, this story might leave you wanting to pick up the phone. After all, if you have parents who are as great as this Twitter user's mom and dad, they deserve all the appreciation in the world.
Up until recently, Twitter user @Javiii_Zuniga lived in a town where the once-ubiquitous Blockbuster still existed. (For most of us, Blockbuster has been obsolete for quite some time.)
Over the weekend, however, Javii tweeted that their local Blockbuster shuttered their doors. While he was presumably okay with it, his brother, who is autistic, was heartbroken. So their parents stepped in — with a perfect DIY Blockbuster, built right in the comfort of their own home for him.
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On Sunday, Javi tweeted photos of their recreation, as well as his brother's reaction.
MY AUTISTIC BROTHER WAS SAD THAT BLOCK BUSTER WAS CLOSING DOWN SO MY PARENTS MADE A MINI ONE AT HOME FOR HIM! ?❤️ pic.twitter.com/B4oo74NBvi
— jaavii (@Javiii_Zuniga) April 23, 2017
Since Javi posted the photos to Twitter on Sunday, his tweet has gone viral, with over 27,000 retweets and over 106,000 likes at the time of writing. Other users, of course, chimed in to credit his parents for being so wonderful.
@Javiii_Zuniga Please tell your parents how incredible they are, and thank you so much for documenting this beautiful moment
— Ani (@toniricearoni) April 25, 2017
@Javiii_Zuniga your parents are absolutely amazing for this. ?????
— soph ? (@droolhes) April 24, 2017
@Javiii_Zuniga @darealestandrea pic.twitter.com/ocDW6VBYMT
— Armando alvarez (@Armandoalva231) April 24, 2017
According to the National Autistic Society in the U.K., routines can be a way for those with autism to cope with every day life, and repetitive patterns can be a source of enjoyment. The world can be unpredictable, and this stability helps them to know at least some of what is going to happen on a regular basis — which seems the case for Javi's brother and his trips to Blockbuster.
Sure, they could have gotten Netflix, but this isn't about watching movies as one Twitter user pointed out in a reply, "Autistic people can get very fixated on things/routines and any change can make them upset, sad and frustrated. It's a comfort thing."
Refinery29 has reached out to Javi for comment and will update this post when we get a response.