What do you think are the needs people have in your small corner? It is not a bad thing to ponder ways we might discover this.A recent report of the RACV [the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria, Australia] contained a survey seeking to discover why people came to them for help?
In one year 1.2 million Victorians called the RACV. What do you think was the biggest request? You’re right! The most common need was a flat battery …41 % of all cries for help were because of battery failure caused mainly through leaving our car lights on.
The next most common cause? 21 % of calls were because of keys locked in the car. What an absent minded bunch we are!
The article said that one RACV man arrived at a house to be told, “It’s in the backyard.” When he checked he found no car or any vehicle and when he asked about the person’s need, the householder said: “There's a pig in my backyard, can you help me put it into this bag?” After stuffing the pig into the bag, the mystified man finally discovered that the householder had intended to call the RSPCA!! [Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals]
The article in the Melbourne AGE was headed: “It’s my pig. It just won’t start.”
I think it would do us good to find out the needs and the issues people are facing around us. After that it would be good to reflect on how we can develop our care in such practical responses.
We too might find ourselves being asked to stuff pigs into peoples’ bags but our very willingness to oblige may speak volumes!!
Geoff Pound
Source: The Melbourne Age, circa 2002.
Image: A wayward pig
