What happened
This was 1983, so there was no Google Maps. All I could think to do was shout down the carriage, ‘Does anyone here speak English? We’re lost!’Read more in the Kindness of strangers seriesI was visiting the Netherlands with a friend and her nine-month-old baby, accompanying mum and bub as her husband had been unable to travel with her. We were based in Amsterdam but had ventured out by train to Utrecht to visit her aunt for lunch. After a pleasant afternoon we boarded a train home, full of confidence.As my friend was preoccupied with her son, I sat gazing out the window. As station after station relieved the train of its passengers, I began to wonder if we were actually heading to Amsterdam. The scenery didn’t look familiar. I held my tongue until I was sure we were heading the wrong way; then I finally spoke up. Continue reading…This was 1983, so there was no Google Maps. All I could think to do was shout down the carriage, ‘Does anyone here speak English? We’re lost!’ I was visiting the Netherlands with a friend and her nine-month-old baby, accompanying mum and bub as her husband had been unable to travel with her. We were based in Amsterdam but had ventured out by train to Utrecht to visit her aunt for lunch. After a pleasant afternoon we boarded a train home, full of confidence. As my friend was preoccupied with her son, I sat gazing out the window. As station after station relieved the train of its passengers, I began to wonder if we were actually heading to Amsterdam. The scenery didn’t look familiar. I held my tongue until I was sure we were heading the wrong way; then I finally spoke up. My friend was upset at the news – not only was she out of bottles and nappies for the baby, she wasn’t carrying any of the medication used to manage her epilepsy. We hadn’t planned to be away any longer than the afternoon and the situation suddenly felt dicey. This was 1983, so there would be no Google Maps to the rescue. All I could think to do was shout down the carriage: “Does anyone here speak English? We’re lost!” A lovely gentleman stood up and volunteered his help. He asked where we were trying to go and confirmed we were currently hurtling in the opposite direction. The man offered to get us back on the right train but said he’d need to call his wife first to let her know he’d be late for dinner. Our assumption was that we would get off at the next station, he’d call his wife from a payphone, put us on the right train, then resume his journey home – already a great kindness. Instead, after getting off the phone, he announced he was going to take us all the way to Utrecht to ensure we didn’t get lost again. That kind man ventured to Utrecht with us, then waited with us to get us on the correct train to Amsterdam. By that time, it was about 7pm, about four hours after we left our lunch. The man was certainly going to be very late for dinner but made us feel as though we were being no trouble at all. We gave him a big hug as we parted ways and asked him to please thank his patient wife. It was a beautiful act of generosity – not just his willingness in responding to a stranger’s plea for help but sacrificing so much of his own time. I’ve tried many times to pay the favour forward when I’ve heard someone call out: “Can anyone help? I’m lost!”
What is known
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