After saying he has 'no friends', boy with autism receives hundreds of letters

Last week, a father shared a heartbreaking post on Facebook after he saw that his son had answered "no-one" when asked who his friends were in a school project.

Bob Cornelius said it "felt like a punch in the gut" to learn that his son, Christopher, who is on the autistic spectrum, was lonely. Cornelius, a social worker by day, explained in his post how loneliness suffered by children on the autism spectrum can be reduced and urged parents to talk to their children.

He also shared his address so those who wanted to send Christopher a supportive letter could.

Four days later, the Cornelius family's letterbox was full. Hundreds of cards, letters and gifts arrived for Christopher.

And they just kept coming.

And coming.

One tear-jerking letter, from Ben Tidwell, stood out to Cornelius. He shared it on Facebook with the caption "I can't". We couldn't either.

The post is unlikely to stop anytime soon. Christopher's story has been shared more than 53,000 times and has captured the hearts of many, including the likes of Sarah Palin and Ashton Kutcher.