There Is Kindness In Our World

As we left the Shooting Star Cancer Unit at Wrexham Maelor Hospital after Tim’s first chemotherapy treatment, a nurse came after us with a box. A lovely chap with twinkling eyes, still linked to his IV, said,

‘Ohh, you’ll love that, it’s got a hat in it.’

We had been there for five hours and had another load of information along with a bag of drugs to take home, so we tucked it into the car and set off for home.

With our coats and boots off, and the kettle on, we unpacked Tim’s gifts at the kitchen table.

As Tim said,

‘I have never been given anything like this.’

There was so much kindness and thoughtfulness in his box, and everything was useful. There was a hat, deep care hand cream, mouthwash, Donna’s Ashworth’s ‘I Wish I Knew’ book, a puzzle book, a book of different-sized PostIT Notes, a metal drinks bottle, a tote bag, a pen, a pair of socks, handmade chocolates, a tin of boiled citrus sweets, a complimentary treatment voucher, a mug signed by all the volunteers, a manicure set, notes from the volunteers, and everything was wrapped in star spangled tissue paper. One of Donna Ashworth’s beautiful poems was pasted onto the inside lid.

Tim picked up the hand knitted heart in a cellophane wrapper with a picture of a lavender bush, made by a local village craft group. He went through to the sofa and took the heart out and sat looking at it, with it’s little ‘Made With Love’ silver badge, and his eyes filled with tears.

I put my arm around him as I silently remembered all the knitted hearts that my lovely funeral director friend, Kylie, asks her family and friends to make, so she can gift them to the families she cares for. There is love in every stitch.

We wrote to the Awyr Las Charity (Welsh for Blue Sky) and thanked all the volunteers, support workers and donators for their loving kindness. What a difference their box made to one of the scariest days of our lives, as their loving energy touched our hearts, pushing fear onto the back burner.

✨💕