Small Things Done With Great Love

Last week was one of changing plans, holding breaths and seeing what unfolds. A reminder that however much we wish it otherwise, so much is out of our control.

It’s been a week of hospital visits. I say that not to be dramatic because thankfully the people I love are going to be OK, but because it is always a humbling experience. A reminder that what truly matters is often quite simple - health, love, care and kindness. 

So often in our society we shunt the more ‘difficult’, ‘painful’ and ‘uncomfortable’ aspects of life into places that aren’t so visible. This can sometimes be essential in ensuring that people are being cared for collectively. However, it can also mean that as a society we often move through ‘normal’ life without being touched by what we would otherwise witness – the preciousness and vulnerability of life, that people are so much more important than profit, that kindness is an essential ingredient in healing and wellbeing.

I can honestly say that last week my heart was frequently blown open in seeing kindness in so many shapes and forms. In settings where life, health and comfort are not taken for granted, where death, pain and uncertainty are more apparent, small acts of kindness are a reminder of what is most important.

From loving words offered between strangers in a lift “I hope that things will be OK”, to soft words of reassurance as drips are changed, names shared between doctors and patients offering a reminder that we are all human and in this together in some way.

The words “they are AMAZING” has been a common phrase this week in relation to the care received from volunteers, porters, nurses and doctors. To those of you who work in the NHS (or any other profession where you give from a place of kindness that often isn’t acknowledged in the way it should be) thank you.

It reminded me of these words from Mother Theresa:

“In this life we cannot do great things.
We can only do small things with great love.”

 
My wish for us all this week is that we can be both on the giving and receiving end of precious, small things offered with great love. That we can recognise the multitude of ways and places that such acts are taking place (even if they lie out of sight) and the immense impact that they have (as well as the importance of adequately funding and supporting them).