“HEAVY LIFT please”

Val was in Hamilton last Thursday working through her list of ‘To do’s. Top of her list was the purchase of garden pavers for a landscaping job at our home. A hardware store staff member helped her load the heavy (25kg each - 8 in total) pavers on to a trolley. Whew. 

At the checkout Val asked for a ‘heavy lift’ to put the pavers into our car but no staff members were available at the time. A young tradie (Tradesperson), a customer himself overheard her ask for help. “I’ll do it for you.” 

He spent the next 15 minutes carefully ensuring that our car wasn’t scratched or dented during the moving of pavers from trolley to car. Thanks! A vigorous, grateful handshake followed. 

But the story doesn’t finish there. The pavers still needed to be moved from our carport to the deck. 

Cue a morning cafe conversation I had the next day with a friend. He asked me what I was going to do for the next few hours. Among a few other things, I mentioned the lifting job ahead of me. “I can help you with that.” And he did with seemingly little effort on his part. “It’s all about technique,” he said as he hoisted the heavy pavers one by one onto his shoulder and carried them down 8 steps to the deck.

Time for a thankful hug and handshake and the sharing of some produce from the vegetable garden. A difficult job was now manageable as we worked together. Choosing to act kindly in that way made a difference in our lives as we aren’t getting any younger.