PEMBROKE PINES, Fla. – A new viral video has already been viewed thousands of times on social media.
It shows a little boy, just back from the Bahamas, surrounded and embraced by his adoring preschool classmates.
Makai Simmons, 3, bravely rode out Hurricane Dorian with his family in Freeport, Grand Bahama.
Simmons' mother, Tekara Capron, posted the video along with the caption: "My heart. Today was my son’s first day back to school in the USA after experiencing Hurricane Dorian in Freeport. The love he received from his friends as soon as he walked into class was so touching."
Capron, who is originally from the Bahamas, said the trip was supposed to be a normal family gathering over the Labor Day weekend.
Dorian changed those plans. And the ordeal was terrifying.
"At one point our door just flew open. And Makai was like, 'Oh my God.' He thought that Dorian was a monster," Capron said.
Makai put on a brave face in the aftermath of the storm. In the middle of having to wring out his soaked clothes and throw out ruined toys, at one point he put on a Spider-Man life vest because he wanted to help others.
"He put it on and he was like, 'Mommy, I’m going to go save the children in the water,'" Capron said.
After eventually returning to Pembroke Pines, little did the family know Makai would get his own superhero welcome. Capron said he attends the Learning City Academy on Taft Street.
"As soon as he walks into the class, the whole entire class jumps up," Capron recalled.
Even small children can give big lessons in humanity.
"Kids are really pure and they're really innocent," Capron said. "I think that that's something that we, as adults, that we have to really learn from, especially during times like this."