‘We had been staying in a gîte but moved to a small hotel closer to the hospital. It was a terrifying and stressful time.’ Composite: Victoria Hart/Guardian Design
I was just 10 at the time but my siblings and I will never forget the sense of safety, comfort and warmth they offered
We were doing the groceries when a blood vessel burst in my mother’s brain. I was 10 years old and on a family holiday to France that very suddenly changed its tenor. In the following weeks Mum went through brain surgery, suffered a stroke and was placed in intensive care.
We had been staying in a gîte but moved to a small hotel closer to the hospital. It was a terrifying and stressful time, even as a young kid who knew things were serious – but didn’t understand quite how serious.
So it was an unexpected blessing that the owners of our new hotel, Jean-Claude and Therese, were heaven-sent. Jean-Claude, a fabulous chef, would cook us kids whatever we wanted for dinner (most often spaghetti bolognese, much to our father’s embarrassment). When Therese caught me hand washing our clothes in the sink, she intervened and began doing our laundry for us. Both dished out hugs as required. And they introduced our father to English-speaking locals who were able to help him navigate the French medical system.
One weekend the entire hotel had been pre-booked for a wedding, meaning there was no room for us. Rather than allowing us to find another hotel for a couple of nights, Jean-Claude arranged for his mother to take us in. She was a lovely, non-English speaking octogenarian with a pet canary, kind enough to open her doors to a family she’d never met and could not communicate with.
Many decades have passed and we’ve since lost both Mum and Dad but my siblings and I will never forget Jean-Claude and Therese. At a time when we needed it most, they not only helped my dad with the practical matters that accompany a critically ill wife overseas but offered my siblings and me a priceless sense of safety, comfort and warmth.
I hope I can show half as much kindness for a stranger in need, should I ever have the opportunity.
