Eight-year-old JW Hardin has become an overnight online sensation. Passengers on board a Southwest Airlines flight from Nashville to Chicago on October 5 were treated to an impromptu song he composed himself, the Daily Mail reported.
While on the two-hour flight, JW who was diagnosed with autism about four years ago, was asked to share his song with fellow passengers.
One passenger managed to take out their phone and record the video of the little guy when a flight attendant introduces the young performer over the plane's intercom speaker.
JW then hesitantly approaches the front of the plane and says "Hello everyone! I'm going to sing this song, I made up." He then proceeds to serenade his audience with his song: "I'm flying on a plane, on a plane, on a plane. I'm flying on a plane on to Chicago now."
The touching video earned JW many fans. But one person who is especially proud is mother Amy Caswell Hardin who said her son was so excited about the trip he had crafted the song to celebrate their holiday to Chicago.
Hardin said JW had come a long way from his early years when he was "pretty-non-verbal". Autism is a complex neuro-behavioral condition that includes impairment in social interaction and developmental language, according to WebMD. Because of the range of symptoms, it is now called autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
She expressed her gratitude to the crew for giving him a moment to shine. "I'm so grateful to Southwest Airlines for being welcoming and inclusive to all their patrons," she told the Daily Mail.