Locals there to help out when it is most needed
Ididn’t know what to say! I can hear you! Don’t say that bs, its true, well sorta, I knew I could make something up quickly, and stuff it up just as quickly too. They called me to the stage for a presentation at the Salvation Army launch of the Red Shield Appeal, Pete Wheeler our chair went a little overboard with kindness. Mum would have been proud. Thank you my dear friend. I looked around nervously, and there were near 400 local business people there, Oh Dear!
These wonderful locals did not have to be there - they were there because they wanted to be there, they did not have to give, but they all did, because they wanted to give. Very, very special. So the first thing that came to mind, “A city’s soul and success is revealed by its generosity”. True eh? Ours was revealed that day.
Thank you to every single one of you, times are tough, but as is typical of this great city, a hand is there when needed.
I love the Salvo’s and the incredible work they do, but what an absolute honour I’ve had bestowed on me, being the ambassador of the Red Shield Appeal. This of course was my last.
Whatever words I said in reply felt a little insignificant compared to the story of our guest speaker Nasir Sobhani, what a ripper bloke, he’s the Street Barber in Melbourne, cutting hair for the homeless. One of the true joys of this hobby of mine, (well it can’t be seen as a job, I love it so much) is meeting and talking to people of purpose like this young
man. His story is of hardship, and then conquering those hardships to make a difference in the world, and he does. I had a great laugh with him, a real character, and real tattoos!
He had some on his eyelids and I had to wait till he blinked to try and read them. I said to Nasir that this is the closest I’ve been to a barber for many years, he laughed, and we joked about lack of hair, mine of course, and everything from tattoos to kangaroos, simply a top bloke doing his bit for others. All these incredible people doing street stuff, the Street Doctor,
the Street Laundry, Street Barber, not sure what i could do, I’d get lost and end up in the wrong street! But I guess we can all do a bit, we all have expertise in something, I’m still looking.
Looking at my shirt in the pic, I could be the Street Art.
A short selfish moment. It’s exactly one year ago today, my Barb and I rushed to be with my Mum in her last few hours in this life.
The girls at St Vincent’s were magnificent, the care in those hours was extraordinary. We were incredibly tired and talked and talked to Mum, we know she could hear. The girls brought a little bed for us next to her. I said: “Mum I’m going to have a quick snooze, then we’ll make you a cuppa”. A moment later, she left us. Barb hugged me and said “I think you gave her permission to go, she waited for us”.
Hug your Mum and Dad, give them a call if you’ve had a blue, and enjoy this last day of autumn. Winter tomorrow, hugging weather.
Happy days to all.
Ooroo.