Dad left in tears after reading his son's heartbreaking letting to Santa

A father has revealed that he broke down in tears after reading his son's letter to Santa and realising what he really wanted for Christmas.

Most kids want the latest toys or devices, but one boy from the UK named Jonah just wanted to hang out with his dad more, according to The Sun.

Jonah's heartbreaking note to Santa revealed that his dad works for a global shipping company and has been clocking up a lot of hours at work delivering gifts ahead of Christmas.

So Jonah took matters into his own hands, writing to Santa Claus asking him to help his dad with deliveries so he could be at home for Christmas.

Jonah's dad admitted that he broke down in tears after reading the note and realised that he needed to be at home more often with his boy.

He shared the letter on Reddit and wrote, "I'm a UPS driver and I cried when I opened up our son's letter to Santa. This letter really opened my eyes on some things."

Jonah's note read, "Dear Santa, I would really like to spend more time with my dad, so I would really appreciate it if you could get him off work early.

"Because he is a UPS worker and people are ordering so many presents, so I could love it if you could help him in any way."

More than 3000 people commented on the touching note, with one fellow parent writing, "I can only imagine how it feels. Used to be a UPS truck driver assistant you - guys work long hard hours. Keep your head up."

Another commented, "As a warehouse worker I'm with you. Six-day weeks since March, I cry once I'm home and finally hold my kids."

"If you ever needed a sign that you need to spend more time with your kid, this is it," another wrote.

One suggested the dad show the letter to his boss as it might help his chances of getting some time off, while another said that every parent should read the note.

They wrote, "I hope they understand that kids, especially when being difficult, are sometimes demanding such a simple thing. It can be so easy to get off of a 12hr shift and say 'why isn't [child] asleep, why can't I just have 10 minutes to relax'.

"They are awake because they want 10 minutes with you. It is the most important thing in the world to them. They will remember it, it isn't just a random Wednesday that they will forget."

Others revealed they'd had similar experiences growing up.

"My dad had a similar schedule," one wrote. "Growing up I only saw him on Sundays."

Another wrote, "I feel you. My partner works at FedEx, and this time of year they always have to pick up extra shifts, and things are much worse this year than usual."

This article was first published on the NZ Herald and is republished here with permission.