Shining through the rain

    I was on the bus with my children, aged four and two, heading home after spending the morning at playgroup. While on the bus, I noticed rain droplets and realised that I would have to walk home from the bus stop in the rain. 

    Home was only two blocks away but it was not a pleasant walk with one small boy fast asleep in the pram, the other one in a raincoat and no umbrella for myself. A ute passed us on the road and, a few minutes later, I saw it reversing back and the driver looking directly at us. 

    When it stopped, a young man put the window down. "Hey, here’s an umbrella for you – please take it!" he called out. 

    I stood there stunned, barely believing that a complete stranger was being so thoughtful. But the man insisted. "Come on, give this to your mummy," he said to my older son. So I gratefully accepted the offer, thanked him and watched the ute disappear down the road. 

    This man might have needed the umbrella for himself later during the day but he preferred to give it to someone else. It was a lesson to my sons that it’s possible to give without expecting anything in return. 

    Kylie Alcala, Strathpine, Qld