I don’t know if it’s an age thing that just happens or whether my wife should be reserving a place for me in the local psychiatric hospital but I often forget what I did yesterday but remember some tiny, small detail from 40 years ago! Let me know if you get the same thing, or message my wife if you don’t, and think she should make an appointment.

Before Covid, I think Amazon had maybe three clients in Italy and I was one of them.. That might be an exaggeration but you get the point. When Covid came there was a big turnaround for them it seems. This has harmed the high street. Any town or city you walk through now has lines of closed stores. Take Asti as an example. There seems to be one store after the other going out of business and they once sold all the stuff you and I now get on Amazon cheaper and without having to leave our chair.

Italy’s towns have good hearts - there are bars, ice cream parlous, more bars and other businesses to keep the financial heart of these towns beating. I see stuff about towns in my home country of England, it’s sad, really sad. They are dying fast.

Now what has this got to do with ancient memories - bare with me!! 

Many, many years ago, sometime just after the Roman Empire collapsed when I was in my early 20s I worked as a multi-drop delivery driver in London. I delivered laundry to hotels and restaurants in London’s West End. The depot, the laundry, was on Bows Rd in north London so I’d drive up from my home in East London, about an hour’s drive, to get to the depot, get my van loaded with huge heavy white bags of towels, table clothes, uniforms, and my delivery instructions, then I’d head down into the West End.

My delivery route was the coolest parts of London - Mayfair, Park Lane, Covent Garden - all the high-end establishments. It was hard work and it was stressful. Multi-drop means just that, you don’t make a few drops and then go home. I’d make 25 maybe and I’d have the get the orders right, fight traffic, find the places I had to deliver to - there were no GPS devices then - I used a London A-Z map. Then after the last delivery, I’d drive the dirty laundry back to north London, then drive home.

Something I remembered recently was how kindly I was treated by many of the people in the places I went to. I’d eat in the finest restaurants and hotels in London! Always on the back step or in the kitchen but the staff always looked after me - unsold food or cancelled orders. They knew I worked hard and they always showed their appreciation even with just kind words and friendliness.

I order a lot of stuff from Amazon. Light bulbs, batteries, camera gear, house stuff, car cleaning gear - you name it! Yesterday I had a delivery and it was pouring with rain and I had earlier remembered this period way back years ago, what I did as a young man. And I thought - what do I do to pay that driver back, to show I care? No, I don’t have to, Amazon doesn’t oblige me but those kind people 35 years ago? I’m still in their debt because they made me feel valuable and worthwhile even though my job was not significant.

Some guru once said - 'don’t do to others what you don’t want them to do to you'. OK, but a shame, it’s negative, suggesting it’s better to do nothing but a better quote is - 'do to others what you would want them to do to you'. And the same person also said - 'give to others and they will give to you freely'. It's a natural law. Sadly, it doesn't work with everyone but let's not let the selfish people spoil it for the rest of us.

When the delivery van pulled up at my gate in the pouring rain I grabbed a bottle of beer from the fridge and took it to the driver and thanked him. I begged him not to drink it then, it was 10am! He was very happy.

I loved that job as a delivery driver but it wasn’t my future. In fact, it was the very last time I worked for someone else, for a company. It was character-building, it taught me many things, especially that kindness in an often cruel world is extraordinary and makes all the difference.

The reason some people are unkind and are void of generosity is they lack empathy. They are not able (or unwilling) to put themselves in someone else's position, to see it how the other person sees it. This leads to frustration and loneliness. No one wants to be with a person that's always looking for their own interest, that's always trying to take advantage. We naturally avoid them as they break the natural law. And after all, we are born selfish, we have to learn to be generous and kind. It takes effort. Selfish people die lonely.

So here’s my challenge - when the delivery guy or girl visits you again - even if it’s to deliver a low-value item - give him or her a gift. It doesn’t have to be something of high value but your thoughtfulness to that person is priceless as it shows we care. I promise they will think about it for a very long time, and they then might do something kind to someone else. They will - it’s a life’s rule! And you will feel good! It's not the motive but a by-product of kindness.

Amazon is great but it’s also harming our high streets, but we have a chance to give something back, to create a memory like those people 35 years ago did for me. I'm sure you have similar experiences. And remember - kindness always comes back on us, often in much bigger ways than we can imagine. And you will feel good - it’s not our motive for doing it but is a natural by-product of kindness.

Here’s a tip:

If you’re fairly sure about a house you’re going to visit - take the owner a small gift! Maybe something representative of your country! It doesn’t have to be expensive or big but a gift, a kind thought can make all the difference. It creates trust and can make a big difference to how the process goes.

Richard Edwards