Out & About Spring 2018

JONATHAN HOPSON

In a world where we are so caught up in our own problems, whether at work or at home, and where the pace of life has become somewhat hectic, JONATHAN HOPSON is heartened by constant examples of random acts of kindness that underline the caring side of human nature

varied acts of random kindness. When the snow hit West Berkshire and Hampshire, two dreadful accidents closed a local section of the A34, which meant people were queuing for hours to be diverted off the dual carriageway.

Lorries got stuck on the A343 near Hurstbourne Tarrant and nearby Esseborne Manor hotel took in grateful drivers and gave them somewhere warm to wait while the roads cleared. Around Newbury, hats and gloves tied to posts or benches

T he recent arctic weather conditions showed community spirit is alive and well. During the beginning of March, in the middle of some of the most atrocious weather conditions experienced in Britain for many years, it was really heartwarming to see that community spirit still thrives and flourishes. It was a special brand of pulling together that motivated volunteers to take provisions to the hundreds of drivers stranded for hours on the M62 in sub-zero temperatures and blizzard conditions. In addition to opening Butterworth Hall, at Milnrow, near Rochdale, as an emergency centre for drivers diverted off the M62 due to the extreme weather conditions, some local residents also offered rooms for overnight stays for unfortunate motorists unable to reach home. The stranded motorists no doubt displayed the Dunkirk spirit – determined collective stoicism in the face of danger – a phrase coined from Operation Dynamo in May 1940, when more than 330,000 allied soldiers were evacuated from the beaches at Dunkirk – while the volunteers selflessly put themselves forward and helped out through

appeared, with a label attached inviting a stranger in need to help themselves. Trains were cancelled and various

How do we change the world? – one random act of kindness at a time

stories emerged of people offering lifts to complete strangers to help them on to their destination. Much closer to home for me, and on a much

more minor scale, a car driver in Woolton Hill stuck fast on the side of a country lane, knocked on the nearest door – which happened to be mine – and was greatly relieved to be able to enlist the help of those within to free his vehicle. In a world where the pace of life seems to be increasing at an ever-faster rate and more people appear less inclined to take an active role in their local communities, random acts of kindness become more important. So let’s all do our bit to help by carrying out our own acts of random kindness and as the actor Morgan Freeman put it, playing God in the movie Evan Almighty : “How do we change the world? – one random act of kindness at a time.”

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