Sesame Workshop, also known as Sesame Street, is an American non-profit organization that has been responsible for the production of several educational children’s programs.
When most people think of Sesame Street they think of Elmo, the fluffy red muppet character on the children’s television show Sesame Street. But, the organization touches on much more than just muppets. The organization focuses on providing knowledge of how to talk to kids about tough topics and provides coping and resilience-building techniques to help them face challenges such as divorce, foster care, violence and traumatic experiences.
On Friday, October 18, the official X account of Elmo posted a video with actor Andrew Garfield, who is most known for his roles in “The Amazing Spider-Man” movies, “Tick, Tick…Boom!” and “Hacksaw Ridge.” In the short two-minute video, Garfield opened up about the feelings of grief he has had since losing his mother to pancreatic cancer in 2019.
When Elmo asked Garfield how he was doing he stated that he misses his mom, in response Elmo replied apologetically. But, Garfield stated it’s okay to miss someone even if it triggers a feeling of sadness inside you and that “that sadness is kind of a gift. It’s kind of a lovely thing to feel in a way because it means that you really loved someone when you miss them.”
This clip ultimately reached audiences of users who said that it was released near or on the anniversary of their own parent’s death. This led to users across the internet thanking Garfield and Elmo for discussing the topic of grief and normalizing the emotions that come beside it, as well as explaining it in a way that children across the world will understand.
Within our society, there are often negative connotations that are associated with the discussion of grief. This often leads to children being sheltered from the subject and causes parents or guardians to refrain from discussing it with their children.
The week prior to Garfield’s conversation with Elmo he discussed the topic of grief with podcast host Anna Martin and showed his disappointment with the current expectations within society that make people feel like they cannot be vulnerable when discussing their feelings.
That conversation that Garfield had with Elmo shows not only children but people of all ages that grief is not a bad thing and is not something you have to ignore. As Garfield said, sadness is a gift because it means if you miss someone, you really love them.
