Francis Gay MY WEEK

Whether you believe it or not, all kinds of people are full of kindness

Taking things for granted, Is something we’re inclined to do, A home-cooked meal, a cosy home, Our friends and family too; The help we get when needed, For others’ thoughtful ways, Our thanks and appreciation, Should be given always.

The beggar on the street was telling me his story, and I was deciding whether to believe him or not – as if it mattered.

Then a shopping bag split, things fell to the ground, a woman let out a cry of despair.

He jumped to his feet, whipped a bag from his pocket, gathered everything up, and offered to carry it to her bus stop.

Suspicious (like me) she said, “I don’t have any money to give you.”

He nodded at the cup of loose change he had been sitting behind on the pavement. “It’s OK. I have money,” he reassured her. He asked if I would look after it until he came back. And I did.

Whether I believed him or not, whether she trusted him or not, he showed kindness, a willingness to help, and was prepared to go out of his way for a stranger.

People! They are rarely what we think on first meetings, and they never cease to amaze me.

Robin was involved in a car crash recently.

The other driver took a corner at speed – on the wrong side of the road. The cars ended up in fields on either side of the road, with the other car rolling and coming to rest, upside-down.

“There was a moment of terror,” Robin told me. “Followed by a moment of anger as I got out the car. But, then there was that other moment… when there was no sign of life in the other car, and all I wanted in the world was for that car door to open.”

Both drivers were treated for minor injuries, but that moment – 12 years ago now – made an indelible imprint on Robin’s heart, reminding him there’s a level of awareness where fear, anger, and blame no longer matter, where all that really matters to us is . . . each other.

I spent an evening in a hospital ward recently.

I wasn’t ill, I was giving a break to a tired young mum whose child had breathing difficulties.

The little lad’s medical issues have been cleared up now, and his mother is working on the housing issues that contributed to it.

But, as he lay in my arms, his chest stuttering in its rise and fall, the breath rasping in his throat, I couldn’t help but think what a blessing each and every clear breath we take is.

By far the majority of them pass by unnoticed, until an infection or some other problem gets in the way.

Take a moment, if you can, just to focus on your breathing.

Relax, be aware of the wonderful thing that is happening, the miracle that is our respiratory system, and, if you want to think anything else at all, try, “Thank you.”

Eddie seemed just a little bit happier than usual as were talking, so I asked him about it.

“Ohh,” he said, surprised. “Well … I can only think it’s because both my children, the 11-year-old and the 13-year-old, closed the doors in the house behind them today – without me having to remind them.

“Getting them to do that been one of the most frustrating challenges of my life.”

Can I just say that Eddie has done cycled the Tour de France course twice and renovated an old cottage by himself, so he knows about difficulty and perseverance?

Parenthood! It’s probably the most difficult challenges anyone can take on and, judging by Eddie’s unconsciously happy glow, potentially the most satisfying.