ABC Radio

How far can a small act of kindness go?

Last week, I shared a few words with a stranger

about how they made me feel and two days later ended up on ABC radio.

Katherine Feeney is a local brissie legend. 

She’s a writer and a presenter who brightens people’s day- often by just being herself.

(Personally, she makes me feel better about earnest dancing - as wildly as possible, always)

I happened to pass by her at the ballet and thought it might be nice to let her know how she made me feel.

So I expressed how much I enjoyed her work and thanked her for what she did.

I didn’t introduce myself-  I thought it would be more wholesome to share something nice anonymously and disappear.

The next day, imagine my surprise when she posted a story to her ‘gram about it (you can see a bit of it here ^) and tried to  track me down. She called me ‘The Woman in the White Dress’ (my friend @joteo dressed me in an all white sailor moon gown for the eve!)

What’s beautiful about this is that other people then also started letting her know how much she meant to them.

It can be pretty uncomfortable to show up earnestly, particularly in this cultural climate. You run the risk of people thinking you’re a bit of a wank.

But you never know how much of an impact something small might have on someone else, especially if it’s coming from a real place.

It’s the depth of what you do, not the scale of it, that can make a big difference.

Telling someone how they make you feel is a vulnerable act (and often a small one) that can go a long way.

And I think that’s worth the risk of looking like a wanker.

After all of this, Kat tracked me down and kindly invited me on air to return the favour.

I didn’t tell her this but at that moment, from one earnest human to another,

-that meant a lot to me too.

Thank you Kat :’)