Kia ora Koutou, this last week we’ve seen the fires in Wakefield and learned of hundreds of acts of kindness. I remember being a recipient of this kind of generosity when we were flooded out many years ago.
I’ve referred before to this incident. We had three kids, a cat and a canary. The water had come in over the front step and then inside. Laurie had stacked the furniture, taken up the carpet, while I got the kids up and said wasn’t this fun – we were all going to stay at the local pub, weren’t we lucky?
I wasn’t quite so cheerful when we finally went outside and stepped into the cold water which was up to my waist. Chris could walk and carry the cat. I carried Tim and Laurie carried David. The canary was left in his cage, high up where he could watch the water rise but not find himself swimming in it.
Part of the anxieties were caused by the rubberneckers who couldn’t resist driving down Avenue Road to see the flooding. Their vehicles sent huge waves of dirty water into the house. In spite of repeated requests on the radio, not to drive down the flooded streets, there were still lots who didn’t think it meant them.
In Wakefield the situation was/is much worse, much larger, more people and animals involved, both among those who are fighting the fires and those being evacuated. When I think about all this help that swings into action in an emergency I feel very grateful.
What is it that drives us to be so helpful and kind in an emergency? The knowledge that life is fragile, that we have the skills to help? Or we could be the next one needing assistance?
It used to be thought that there was a sort of ledger that someone called God kept (or maybe St Peter) and whether you were on the debit or credit side made the difference between going to heaven or to hell. Now I think we realise that heaven or hell is right here and if someone’s going through hell its up to us to try and alleviate their situation if we can.
And maybe simply being helpful is the more practical option? We have the skills? It’s the right thing to do? So get stuck in and do it?
Not everyone of course. We still have the small minority of rubberneckers during floods, fire lovers who want to light just one more fire during fires, those who see an opportunity to help themselves to household furniture or appliances while everyone else is engaged in either fighting the danger or helping out those affected by it?
The balance seems to come down on the side of those who help. Which makes us all very lucky when we’re the ones being helped. Anyone who’s had to evacuate their home knows that feeling of helplessness, fear, huge anxiety and the relief when someone says, ‘Now come over here and sit down. Would you like a cup of tea?’
We could live in a society that says some of us are entitled to help but others aren’t.
Despite the things we all know about, the injustices, the sadness, the hard times, the way we swing into helpful mode when our neighbours need help, is amazing.
Good on us.
