The Joy of Forwarding It On

There’s a fellow who sits outside my shop each morning, enjoying his bacon butty and coffee before starting his day. We often exchange a few word, nothing grand, just those small, easy chats that gently start a morning.

One day, as we were talking, I mentioned how Ashbys cafe across the road will let you bring your own cup for your coffee. It’s a small thing, but it saves another takeaway cup from going to waste, and they even knock a bit off the price. He nodded thoughtfully and said he might look into getting one.

Later that day, I remembered I actually had a brand-new cup at home, one I’d won in a competition but never used, since I already had one of my own. So the next morning, I brought it down and handed it to him. No big gesture, just something that would hopefully be more useful to him than gathering dust in my cupboard.

This morning, as I was opening up the shop, he popped his head in with a grin and handed me a bottle of red wine. “For you,” he said.

It completely made my day!

Moments like this remind me how simple kindness really is. It doesn’t need to be planned or dressed up, it just flows, passed quietly from one person to the next. You give something without expectation, and somehow it finds its way back, often in ways that surprise you.

Maybe that’s what we need more of, these small, human moments that ripple outward. A cup here, a kind word there. A reminder that connection doesn’t have to be loud to be powerful.

Perhaps the gentlest kind of strength lies in kindness itself: the courage to care, to notice, to act without needing anything in return.

So here’s to forwarding it on... one small gesture at a time.

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