This is the heartwarming moment a son was reunited with his mother after he became stranded abroad for seven years.
A video shows Romy Cianfaglione, 33, surprising his mother by pretending to be a waiter at a café.
Romy moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina, from Punto Fijo, Venezuela, in 2016 to meet his significant other with whom he had been in a long-distance relationship.
Romy, a personal trainer, ended up staying in Argentina permanently and economic struggles left him unable to see his mother Iris, 63, for seven years.
“I started a new life in Argentina, and just ended up staying there,” Romy said.
“I had wanted to come back for some time; I only came back this time for a visit. I hadn’t been able to come back for some years for economic reasons.”
Romy enlisted the help of his brother, Rony, to plan the surprise.
“The first thing I said when we were planning the trip was, ‘Don’t tell mum,’” Romy said.
The pair enlisted the help of their cousin, Laura Ortiz, 27, who organized the surprise with the owners of the café so that Romy would be able to serve his mother her drink.
Initially, Iris didn’t recognize her son and thanked him as if he were just any waiter but then realization dawned and she burst into tears of joy.
“Laura told her she would be meeting our Italian relatives, who were visiting for lunch,” Romy said. “She never imagined it would be me.
“When she saw me, she thought that the waiter looked like her son, so she smiled at me. When I spoke, she finally recognized me.
“She might have had suspicions because my brother wasn’t very subtle, but she was shocked.”
Romy added, “The thing is, she has heart troubles, so when she was so surprised, we were worried we had killed her.
“It was emotion, adrenaline, nerves, all mixed up in my head together.
“We have a beautiful relationship; we’re very close. We talked all the time when I was in Argentina.”
