This happened a few months ago, but I promised I would make him a tribute.

It was the rainy season (we don’t have winters and summers anymore). I was waiting on the bench while my friend Dina lit up (a cigarette, not herself). The cold went through me, and my coat didn’t help. It was dark and gloomy, and everywhere I looked, the faces of people just wanting to go home, not wanting to be bothered by the predators lurking around on the sides of New Street.

The Big Issue guy, who was given a hot beverage, threw it towards the bin after he finished. It didn’t quite land in the bin, but before it hit the ground, in came the hero. It was all in his eyes, headstrong but compassionate (he was also hot). In an instant he spotted the litter, picked it up before it touched the ground, put it in the bin and carried on.

He expected no recognition, he received no thanks and he confronted nobody. He carried on. I was completely inspired. I was completely taken aback and couldn’t believe what I saw. There really are good people in the world. Can more people learn to be like that man?