A Small Heroic Act Of Neighbourhood Help That Impressed Me
We often believe that we must do great things to make the world a better place. But yesterday I saw a report on television about a couple who, with a small gesture, help many people from their neighborhood.
Also, in Germany, where I live, the Corona crisis has severely affected the daily lives of many citizens. Especially families with children have a hard time, even if we do not have a real lockdown.
People are allowed to go outside without having to account for where they are going. But the kindergartens are closed, and the playgrounds are restricted. Both of these things hit parents with small children very hard.
If you don’t have a garden, you and your children will have to search outside for a long time to find a place where your children can play untroubled. The parks in the residential areas are not a real alternative if you try to practice social distancing. Many families gather there and, of course, do not manage to keep their own children away from the others.
Mothers and fathers stand together in groups, and the children run around together. It is impossible to avoid close contact. Those who want to avoid this have a hard time. Either you stay with the children all day in the apartment, or you have to travel long distances to find areas where there are not dozens of people.
Yesterday I saw a report on television about a childless couple who understood this problem. They have a beautiful house with a big garden. Because they have no children, this garden is unused most of the day. With the playgrounds in the neighborhood being closed off, the couple had an idea.
Why shouldn’t they make the garden, which they hardly used, available to parents with small children? The children would have a protected area to play in, and the parents would no longer have to think every day anew about how to keep the little ones occupied.
So the couple set about implementing the idea.
They advertised in a neighborhood portal on the Internet and also set up a page on which parents could reserve a time. From now on, families from the neighborhood could come into the garden by the hour and let their children play there.
The parents interviewed were happy and grateful for this opportunity. The children played freely and happily in the foreign garden, and the couple found new friends in the neighborhood that they would otherwise never have met.
What resources do you have?
This example shows that neither money nor influence is necessary to make a positive contribution to society. Everyone has resources that they do not always need themselves.
The couple from the television realized that they hardly used their garden and decided to share it with other families.
This made a strong impression on me because it shows that money and power are not the only resources that can make a difference. Time and space are also valuable resources. Those who have space that they do not use can make it available to others who have too little of it. Those who have a lot of free time can do voluntary work and serve the society they live in.
There is no money to be made from such good deeds, but you do get something of great value in return — social contacts and the certainty that you are needed.
As long as people do not lose their creativity and their solidarity with one another, no crisis can harm our society. We should not wait for someone to come and solve our problems, but become active ourselves as soon as we see even the slightest chance to do something.
I am more inspired by such people than by any stars or politicians.
Let us use our resources to make this world a better place. Everyone can do something. Everybody has to do something.
René Junge a published author writing on ILLUMINATION.
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