FIRST IMPRESSIONS CAN BE WRONG!

We recently returned home from a tour of Spain and Portugal in our motorhome. On the way home we stayed at a campsite in northern France. It was just a 1 night ‘stopover’, where we could rest as we journeyed north. We arrived at the site around lunchtime, it was quiet, so we set up and took the short walk into the town where we had lunch.

On return, I looked behind our motorhome and noticed a mini encampment of bikes, small tents and young people. I turned to Margaret and said ‘This could be interesting later’, (anticipating that the 20 or so youngsters might be noisy). The group kept themselves to themselves and continued to set up their camp and get on with their own business.

It was a special day for us, as England were playing Spain in the 2024 Euros final. We were looking forward to the game and hoping that our viewing wouldn’t be affected. The afternoon continued to proceed quietly and we both opened our books and started to read.

About 5 pm, we had a knock on the motorhome door. To our surprise, it was 2 teenage girls who were from the group of campers. They greeted us in French. We returned the greeting and they started to speak to us in their native tongue (French), of which we have an extremely limited understanding. We quickly interjected, apologising for our ‘non comprendre’ as we only speak English. For a moment they looked flummoxed, but then they handed us a laminated sheet, with a photograph of a woman and an explanation of the picture in French. I took the sheet and managed to pick out a few words ‘Iran’, and ‘Prison’ and at the bottom of the page I could see it said ‘Amnesty France’. Putting 2 and 2 together I asked them if the lady was in prison in Iran and a nod of the head and ‘oui’ confirmed this. (Although I could not ascertain why she was imprisoned). They then asked us to sign a petition to the French Government presumably highlighting the woman’s situation, which we did. They thanked us profusely and went on their way knocking on the doors of other people who were staying on the campsite.

We were a little surprised about all of this, but very impressed with the politeness and the commitment of these 2 girls, to something which we felt was a good cause. We got back to our books before preparing our evening meal.

After we’d eaten we received another knock on the door. It was the same 2 girls, who held something in their hands. They greeted us again and said ‘This is a gift for you.’ We took it, thanked them and they went on their way. Now, it’s important at this time to put the timeframe in context. Not only was this the day of the Euro’s final, but France was gearing up for the 2024 Olympics which were soon to take place in Paris. The gift we’d been given reflected this. It was a small book called ‘More Precious than Gold’. On reading the cover, it became apparent that this was a copy of the New Testament, which contained ‘insights‘ or ‘testimonies’ of Olympic athletes. The book had been produced by the ‘Alliance Biblique Francaise’. These 2 young girls must have had a supply of them and were distributing them as they travelled. We were delighted and touched to receive this gift and it is a possession and memory which we will hold very dear in the future.

We relaxed again and continued to observe the group of some 20 or so young people with their leaders throughout the remainder of the day. During the evening, they prepared their meals, washed and tidied up and then met together as a larger group, sitting in a circle discussing and talking. They adjourned and went to bed, long before us. The following morning they all got up, washed, had breakfast, collapsed their tents and prepared for the cycle ride to their next destination. They left the site just as it was when they arrived. Their behaviour was exemplary and we were greatly impressed. Furthermore, it taught me a valuable lesson.

Sometimes I can be tempted to jump to conclusions about things. I make judgments and assumptions based on what I initially see, rather than what develops. There was a song which went something like ‘First impressions are lasting impressions,’ and on many occasions, this will be true. But, the lesson I learned from these fabulous young people, who were so well-behaved, so polite, and had a desire to look beyond themselves, was that I need to be more careful about making such judgments and assumptions – sometimes they will be wrong.

It was an important lesson for me and I thank that group of young people, with particular appreciation to those 2 young girls for this. Merci xx