He hadn't seen his mom in two and a half years.
A Florida mom received the surprise of her life when her military son suddenly popped out of the trunk of a car after they had been apart for more than two years.
In a touching moment caught on camera, 26-year-old U.S. naval soldier Lee Jackson decided to pop out of the trunk of his aunt’s car to surprise his mother, Diana Jackson, during a long overdue visit.
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In a video shared by Caters News, Diana jumps on her son in complete excitement once she realizes what’s happening.
“I was expecting a few tears but I wasn’t expecting her to jump up and jump in my arms like that. It was pretty funny, a little icing on the cake,” Lee Jackson told InsideEdition.com “It made everything worth it at that moment.”
Jackson said that after 17 months at his California base and another seven of deployment to Guam, he knew when he returned that it was time to see his mother.
“I thought, ‘It’s definitely time for me to come home.’ I knew I needed to be there,” Jackson said. “Me and my mom have a saying that when one needs the other, we are usually there and I knew my mom needed to see me.”
So in April, Jackson contacted his mother’s sister, Tonya, who also lives in Florida, to help surprise her.
A month before he arrived he asked his aunt if she could pick him up for the airport for the surprise visit. She agreed, and said they’d then drive to his mom’s house.
Once the day approached and Jackson arrived at his mom’s complex, he decided he wanted to make the moment a little more shocking.
“As we start pulling into the gate, I’m like, 'I want to get her pretty good... How big is your trunk?'” Jackson said. “[My aunt] looked at me like, ‘You’re 6’3,” I don’t know if you’re going to fit in my trunk.’ I’m like, ‘If I sleep in a rack on a ship I can sleep anywhere.’”
Luckily, it was a rainy day and the back window Jackson’s aunt’s trunk was tinted. She also draped a blanket over Jackson.
Then it was time for the big surprise, as they arrived and Jackson emerged from the trunk.
Launching herself into his arms, his mom erupts into a flurry of tears, calling out, “My baby!”
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“I always felt like with my mom gone, it was piece of me missing and especially as close as me and my mom are," Jackson said. "That moment for me felt like being home. Not the moment of surprise, but the moment of having the person you love with you.”
As an added bonus, Jackson also had the chance to surprise his little sisters, ages 6 and 7, when he picked them up from day care afterwards.
Watch: Military Mom Surprises Daughter and Niece During School Assembly
