Woman was taken aback after her autistic neighbor had an angry outburst — then a heartfelt note arrived from him

Some apologies can be both surprising and heartwarming. A woman was similarly surprised by an apology when her autistic neighbor reached out to her after his angry outburst. She shared that the man had bipolar disorder and ended up saying some unkind things in his fit of rage. But the sincere apology and message left the woman, Ruby, in tears, according to the post she shared on her profile @rubyredr0ses on X. The internet agreed that the message was indeed wholesome.

"I’m actually crying. I live in a building with an autistic man who has bipolar disorder," Ruby wrote. "He has angry outbursts and last week said something really unkind. He struggles with understanding he’s in the wrong and apologizing, but gave me this today." She had shared a picture of the card, flowers and chocolates that her neighbor had sent in to apologize to her. The card read, "Sorry, Ruby." The inside of the card explained, "To Ruby, I don't like how things are at the moment and I miss our times together, talking and socializing." He added, "Sometimes I say things in the heat of the moment and I do not always mean them. I hope you will accept my sorry gifts, Love Christopher."

While signing off, Christopher mentioned that he really liked Ruby and her family, as well as their dog. The tweet received over 168,000 likes and the woman was quite surprised that it touched so many people. In one of the comments, Ruby shared, "A lot of people have been praising the understanding I have towards him but what most of you don’t know is that I have asperger's syndrome and mental illness, too." People shared their thoughts on the incident in the comments section of the thread and pointed out how the apology must have been a big step for Christopher. Many people also appreciated the woman's way of dealing with the situation.

@TheHausofJon wrote, "I work in the Behavioral Health Unit at the hospital and this is just showing so much sincerity and positivity! I’m so glad this got retweeted and would LOVE to share this with my patients!" @lennonsmum1888 commented, "I have an autistic son and there should be more people like you in the world, just that understanding! And realizing parts of autism, rather than turn your nose u,p which most people would! That’s so sweet and kind of him, though!" @whatlyddid remarked, "Thank you so much for a) understanding and b) spending time with him and befriending him in the first place. I wish everyone would, but they don't, so it's really lovely that Christopher has you close by to care about him."

@LostForAllTime2 shared, "While my brother and I still don't get along, he deals every day with bipolar and mild Asperger's. People, I think, sometimes forget the incredible humanity and kindness people possess, just because sometimes they don't always act the way we think they should." Another user expressed, "Don't take his actions to heart, people with autism are very complex, especially nonverbal. Coming from the father of one, it can be very stressful when they are out of line, the best you can do is forgive him, because from the note it seems you do matter to him!"