Support for Small Acts of Kindness comes in many forms but, for the first time, someone has penned an appreciative poem.

Bill Withers told us about his project of writing a book of rhymes on the subject of ‘kindness’. He noticed one of our bags while on the lookout for concepts to make up new rhyming verses and felt compelled to acknowledge us, in rhyme.

We love this. Thank you Bill for the tribute and for allowing us to share your words with our widespread family of volunteers and supporters.

It is unusual for me
to name people in poetry,
for I feel anonymity
still shows their magnanimity.

But here’s an organisation
that deserves some admiration,
and so, I unreservedly
will rhyme them some publicity.

The first thing that I’d like to say
is smallactsofkindness.co.uk
tries to help those ageing folk
who bear the brunt of winter’s yoke.

It isn’t just the cold for them,
although this causes them mayhem,
it’s loneliness and isolation
and other such abomination.

This charity epitomises
how the winter victimises
the elderly and isolated,
and how the problem’s escalated.

But recognising that it’s there,
these lovely folk began to care,
and worked out something pragmatic,
which made their targets ecstatic.

They filled up bags with stuff that would
keep people warm and do some good,
developing their paradigm
to ease the deep, dark winter time.

They keep in touch with people who
have had their lives pushed all askew,
simply because they have grown old
and face the dreadful winter’s cold.

B. Withers 2021