Last Night's A Seat At The Table

​Last night we held our third A Seat At The Table at the Aldinga Hotel's front bar.

Lesley, Mick and I sat together on one of the high tables. We met at 6.30pm and by the time it hit 6.45pm we weren't sure that anyone else would come along.

But one woman from our local community walked through the door.

She was nervous. I could sense it. She was outside of her comfort zone.

It didn't help that I'd left my akubra hat at home - the very thing I tell people to look out for if they're going to join us.

But she came in. And she sat down.

She stayed for an hour.

Later, she sent me a message thanking us for our kindness.

Now on the surface, that might not sound like a big deal.

But to me, it is.

Because she didn't need to walk into that pub feeling confident.

She didn't need to know anybody.

She didn't need to have the right words.

She just needed a place where she could take that first step.

And somebody willing to say, "come and sit with us".

That is what I mean when I talk about creating safe places.

We talk a lot about encouraging people to reach out when they're struggling.

But sometimes the person who is struggling doesn't have the words, the confidence or the courage to reach out.

So perhaps we need to make it easier for them.

Perhaps we need to create places where simply showing up is enough.

Last night, one woman showed us that this can work.

She was kind. She was brave.

And she took a seat at the table.

​And I think that is one of the most important things we have achieved so far.