Rory Gibson: Why we should all do one small act of kindness every day

When Rory Gibson was a boy, a kind man helped him on the beach. That one small act of kindness has stayed with him his whole life.

WHEN I WAS a boy our family lived at Redcliffe briefly.

It was only for eight months, and I was in Grade 3, but I remember it as one of the happiest times of my life.

Our rental house was right on the beach not far from the old jetty that had a penny arcade halfway along it. You could pick up a lot of lolly money snorkelling under that pier looking for coins dropped by day trippers playing pinball.

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I loved living there because I was mad on fishing, and would get up at dawn to wet a line before being rounded up for school.

Rory Gibson with a big catch. Picture: Instagram

I didn’t know what I was doing but had bulk optimism, so while catches were low my hopes were high.

Often there was an old man fishing at the same time. He used to catch heaps.

He never acknowledged my presence, despite the fact we were usually the only ones on the beach. Each day I would edge closer to him because wherever he was, that seemed to be where the fish were.

One day, when I was virtually standing on his toes, he spoke.

“See that light-coloured patch? That’s sand between the weed beds. Cast your bait in there.”

I did, and immediately hooked a stonker whiting. I brought it in and the old fella just nodded his head once and walked off. I never saw him again.

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I’ve never forgotten that interaction and have wondered what happened to him, why he never came back to that beach. Did he die or was I annoying him?

Even now, I try to imagine what that man’s life was like, whether he had kids or grandkids of his own, whether he was happy or sad, what he did for work, where else he had fished.

I wish I had the chance to tell him how profoundly grateful I was/am that he bothered to impart some wisdom to a hapless little snotbag encroaching on his personal space on a wide-open beach all those years ago.

The lesson for me - and one I hammer home to my kids - is how one small kindness can stay with someone forever.

Let’s all do it once a day.