Yesterday on my drive home from work, I noticed that traffic over the Tasman Bridge seemed to be travelling significantly slower than usual. I figured there was probably a little fender bender up ahead somewhere causing the delay, so I took a deep breath, relaxed and turned up the radio.
As I neared thed crest of the bridge, I saw the flashing lights from the local constabulary blocking one of the lanes of traffic heading in the opposite direction, pretty much reaffirming my thoughts that it was a minor accident, but also increasing my frustration that there was no need for traffic heading in my direction to slow down to see what's going on.
As the traffic moved slowly along, there were more Police vehicles blocking the lane, and then I saw that it wasn't an accident at all. Our dedicated law enforcement officers, appeared to be talking down a jumper. As I went past, I could see that the officers had the young lady down from the edge of the bridge, back on to the walkway and were comforting her.
The traffic almost immediately sped up as soon as I was past the incident, but I couldn't help thinking that this was a great result for the both the young lady in question, but also the officers involved in talking her down. At the same time I pondered what was so bad in her life that she felt compelled to take such drastic action, would things have been different if she'd talked to someone sooner?
So I ask you to do me a small favour, just check in with the people you care about, make sure they're OK. Catch up for a coffee and just let them talk about what's going on in their life that you may not be aware of. You never know, it's the small things that can save a life.
This piece I posted a couple of months ago highlights how the little things you do can have a big impact on someone
