Mum praises Santa who made ‘super shy’ toddler’s Christmas visit magical

A mum penned a heartwarming shout out to the Santa at her local shopping centre after he made her "super shy" son's visit a bit more magical.

The photo, taken at a mall in Ontario, Canada, shows the toddler smiling down at Santa Claus. The mum, who goes by the name Virri on the photo sharing site Imgur, posted the open letter online alongside the photo. The letter read:

"Dear Mall Santa, "I hope you see this. My 1 year old son was super shy and not having any of the Santa thing. "Not quite in full tears, but I'm about 95% sure that I would have had the 'super meltdown' picture if we went anywhere else.... "Luckily, you and your elves had nobody else in line and were SUPER patient with him - encouraging him, engaging with him and letting him explore your workshop. "This picture is the result of a man who clearly loves his job."

Shout out to this mall Santa

People were quick to praise the Santa for the "wonderful" experience. One person simply said:

"That man is perfect for his job."

Another user commented:

"This is just too sweet."

Someone else compared the scene to a classic Christmas movie, adding:

"He took a few notes from Miracle on 34Th Street. Wonderful."