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Do you remember your first birthday cake, chances are that most of us wont remember but that's not the case for Abraham Walker. He's going viral on the internet for his reaction after receiving his very first birthday cake The heartwarming video has over 3 million views showing the 6th grader sobbing as his mom walks out with the cake.
"It feels like a joyful [sic] in your life," Abraham told WCNC. "Because that was my first birthday cake since I was born with my name."
The Abraham and his brother James were adopted by the walker family at the end of October 2021. They first met the Walker family when Dad Joe took a trip to Sierra Leone to see an orphanage his friend had started.
"It was their 10-year anniversary. And I wanted to go play with the kids. I wanted to see what was all about,"
Joe was there interacting with the local kids and community playing soccer, reading books, that's when he met James.
"James and I formed a really close bond," Joe shared.
The Walkers were sponsoring James from home and would often speak to him via skype.
"So we were able to maintain a relationship," said Joe. Unfortunately, tragedy struck six months later when James was forced out of the orphanage.
"But I got him a phone because I wanted to stay in touch," explained Joe, who was also able to meet James' little brother Abraham when the teen went back to his village. For 30 days, the Walkers Facetimed the brothers every day.
"We knew that if they didn't get back to the orphanage they were going to be put back on the streets," Joe said, "and so we put a team together."
They did what they could to make sure the brothers were reunited at the orphanage, Joe also hopped on a plane to see brothers James and Abraham.
"And by then we had formed this really special connected bond," he said. "And I came home from that trip and said to my wife, 'I just feel like there's more being asked of us.'"
The Walkers made the decision as a family to adopt and include these brothers into the family. After everyone agreed the couple sat the brothers down and asked if they wanted to be apart of their family.
"And we told them that they weren't allowed to answer us that day," Joe revealed.
"We asked him to think of all of the positive things and then to think of the things that would be really challenging and hard... They were really excited and they wanted to be a part of the family and know what a family was."
The pandemic did add a little bit of a hold for the adoption process but they still were able to make the trip to visit the brothers once travel restrictions were lifted.
"I got back over there and was visiting with them and that's when we got the notice from USCIS that it was time to actually go back and pick them up," he shared.
"It's really, really fun," the teen said. "And getting used to the weather, the food and some of this stuff. It's kind of a new experience for me. And it's also nice."
The Walkers are not only enjoying the new members of the family but they are also enjoying watching them experience America for the first time.
"It's absolutely magical and amazing because you think about the first time you take a toddler through, and they're like in awe. And some kids hate it. It's the same, only they're old enough to verbalize how crazy this experience is," Walker told WJZY.
Abrahams birthday was one of those Firsts that was experienced.
"We never knew about something called a birthday," the teen said.
"It just feels like God is showing all the blessings in you. Everybody in the whole world is giving you their best love that they have ever given. That is what it feels like to have that cake."
That moment brought Abraham so much joy he remembers being back in Sierra Leone praying for a family to love and care for him not knowing that his prayers would be answered.
"I love them more than they can ever imagine in the world. They're the ones that showed me to the world, and showed me what happiness is, and showed me what love is, and showed me what it means to have a family around you. I really, really want to say thank you to them for that," he said.
The Walkers also said that since the country didn't take record keeping very seriously its quite likely that the brothers are older than what their certificate says.
"They don't take paperwork very seriously in the country where they come from, so their birth certificates have them as what we think is a little older than what they actually are," said Walker.
Join us in Celebrating Abraham and James.
SOURCE: UPWORTHY