In case you missed it, a photo of a kid supposedly making the American Sign Language (ASL) symbol for “Help” while he sits in Santa’s lap has been making the rounds online, which makes sense. It’s the perfect mixture of cute and hilarious.
https://twitter.com/Swilua/status/938112966343446529
Kerry Spencer, a professor at Stevenson University, told Today that she taught both her children to use ASL when they were young in order to help them communicate. When her son Samuel was placed on Santa’s lap twelve years ago, he made the sign for “Help,” but Spencer didn’t notice until she saw the photo. Posting the photo online has since become an annual holiday tradition, but this is the first year Spencer chose to post it to Twitter.
People were duly impressed.
Oh what a sweet boy but that is hysterical !
— Missy (@MichelleDelNigr) December 7, 2017
This is the best Santa picture ever and would be on my wall year round 😂😂😂
— 🖤🦄Zombie Unicorn🧟♀️🖤 (@chronicfinders) December 10, 2017
https://twitter.com/ychristiney/status/940324654308306945
But other people felt that need to point out that young Samuel was not, in fact, making the sign for “Help,” which is done by placing a fist thumbs up in an open palm and raising both hands.
Which sign variant is this? BSL and ASL are a bit different (thumb up fist on palm upwards flat hand). I think the left hand might be moving away? Maybe I’m overthinking this…
— James Alex Gibson (@JamesAGibson) December 6, 2017
https://twitter.com/IsaakDoreo/status/941159780302934016
LOL I think you are seeing what you want to see. Cute picture, but it simply looks like he is touching one hand with another. No secret message, symbolism, or “sign.” LOL
— 14thGenAmerican 👩🇺🇸 🐔 🌹🌈 ♊️ 🚆 (@enfield1014) December 11, 2017
Looks like he’s signing “cookie” to me.
— Олексій Чірков (@caroline_ramey) December 11, 2017
Spencer responded by saying that children often “mispronounce” signs as they often do with spoken words, but she had seen her son make the sign before and she knew exactly what he was trying to say.
https://twitter.com/Swilua/status/938383157744865280
https://twitter.com/Swilua/status/939215281720786944
“It is the sign he always made when he needed help,” she told Today.
She also tweeted the correct sign for “Help” to avoid confusion.
https://twitter.com/Swilua/status/939230233089232896
So what’s really going on here? Is a mom just trying to grab a bit of viral fame using an old photo, or is a kid, who certainly looks distressed, actually trying to signal for help?
We only know two things for sure.
- That kid is adorable
- Mall Santas are scary
H/T Today
