Every day there are stunning photos posted on social media that capture the beauty of our region, like this one from Austinmer Beach. Photo: Kirk Gilmour.
Social media as a whole has a lot of enemies and deservedly so in many instances.
I know many friends who’ve abandoned it all together, fed up with the vitriol and hate that often spews forth.
I’m sure many of us have been tempted to add a comment telling people to pull their heads in for being so rude and generally unpleasant, but it’s not worth getting into a slanging match with someone who’s incredibly loudmouthed and opinionated when they’re behind a keyboard.
But this column is not about the rude and crude keyboard warriors, it’s more about the warm and fuzzies, those posts that give you a bit of hope for mankind and our neighbours.
As I was scrolling through Facebook (or whatever it’s known as these days) this week I came across some really nice, thoughtful and happy posts.
Maybe it’s the time of the year when people put away their cranky pants for a bit and instead find the niceness inside.
One thing that has brought entire communities together is the plea to find the missing parcel. Has anyone else noticed there seems to be a huge spike this year in delivery drivers who don’t know how to read a map – or more likely follow directions from a random voice telling them where to go?
I reckon there’s an awful lot of people who’d like to tell them where to go. Oops, that’s not very festive, but you get the message.
Like this post: “Parcel man was just in my street, dropped a parcel out of his van and ran over it. Appears to be clothing so should be OK.”
I love it when people take the time to write congratulatory messages, and some of those thank-you posts come right from the heart.
“To the four teenage boys from Warilla High School who knocked on our door and started to sing All I want for Christmas is You, you made my day.”
“Congratulations to Kiama School of Performing Arts students Frida and Billy for their incredible monologue performances at the Kiama Carols! A special shoutout to Evie McAlary, who excelled as co-host alongside the amazing Damien Leith. What a fantastic night!”
“I just want to send a shout to the Berkeley community. I posted my cat missing yesterday and the amount of shares and concern was overwhelming. [She was] found by a wonderful couple who kept her safe until I picked her up. So a big shout out to them both. Thank you to everyone who tagged me, msged me and called me to let me know, you are all amazing people.”
“I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude to the amazing community and the wonderful people who came to my aid yesterday at Austinmer Beach. After a sudden fall, I was fortunate to have so many caring individuals around me. Thank you to everyone who helped me and stayed by my side until the ambulance arrived. Your kindness and support meant the world to me. It’s moments like these that remind me of the strength of our community.”
And one that proves the kindness of strangers that seemed to pop up during COVID times has not disappeared: “Hoping this man is on this page. Some man paid for my shopping today at Woolworths Unanderra. I seriously am still in shock, you always hear about it but when it happens to you, omg What A Feeling. Thank You So Much Paying it forward for sure.”
Some people are happy to give stuff away for free and want to offer it around to their community: “Today was a very abundant day for cucumbers with another 10 picked off the vine. Feel free to drop by after 3 pm as we don’t leave them out in the heat of the day. They’ll be in a box by the letter box, help yourself.”
I don’t blame this poster for wanting to offload their weighty unwanted goods: “FREE: 200 hundred pavers. Pavers are 6 x 9 inches each.”
And I love this warmhearted offer – I can picture someone who just loves working with their hands and is thinking of others: “Does anyone know a child who may be getting a doll at Christmas? I have 13 large granny squares, perfect for dolly’s special blanket! I am giving these away, please msg me if you’d like one.”
When I manage to skim over the ads and totally irrelevant posts (which I’ll sometimes delete until I fear those faceless Facebookers will just figure out what is relevant to me), I often get a laugh out of some of the weird and whacky stuff that pops up.
“If anyone finds a red frisbee on the port side of MM beach on the grass area – It’s my dogs, it’s the third one I’ve bought him (two got lost in the sea) I’m going back for it after my meeting – but just in case as it’s his favourite.”
“It’s a long shot, but does anyone know details of this potter who sold at Coledale Markets? Signed ‘EM’, purchased years ago. Have also asked the markets. *edit*potter found!”
“Hiya, I’m wondering if anyone has one or two adult life jackets they are looking to give away or trade a homebaked good for??”
“Does anyone local have a frog pond? We are overrun with tadpoles and hoping to rehome some. They don’t have legs yet. Just concerned about all the frogs on the way.”
And if some of the local photos are anything to go by, we have some hugely talented snappers in the Illawarra. Every day there are stunning pictures of sunsets, sunrises, beaches and bush which show off our region in all of its glorious beauty.
So thank you for the happy posts, the grateful, the humble, the happy thoughts. If only we had more of them, the world would be a much happier and peaceful place.
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