Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
Philippians 4:5
As I was making my way home the other day through Nelson’s five o'clock traffic, I slowed for some roadworks on Washington Road. As I passed traffic management workers, I noticed one young man amid the roadcones, helping to control the lights. He had the power to make me and all the other commuters stop... and go... and stop… and go. That's all he had to do, all day.
As cars passed him, he threw the most enthusiastic mana wave I’ve ever seen to each motorist, including me, and all the cars behind me. The following few times I drove through these roadworks I saw him doing the same. I observed other drivers tooting, sticking their thumbs up, winding down their windows to throw him a mana wave back. His enthusiasm did not waver all the time I saw him while that section of the road was being worked on. I appreciated his dedication to waving at every vehicle – from the old Mini to the giant Hilux.
One day my husband rang me out of the blue and excitedly asked, “Have you gotten a mana wave on the way home?” I didn’t need any further context to know who he was talking about.
Later, I saw a post about him in a Nelson community Facebook group, calling him “an absolute ray of sunshine”. This post has over 400 likes and dozens of comments (which is a lot in a private group for a small city like Nelson) bursting with appreciation. The young worker himself left a comment, saying he was “just hoping to send our community off with a smile and mana wave each day”.
I saw his face again after Nelson City Council filmed him to announce the end of reseal season on their Facebook page.
The mana wave isn’t new, but it did take the country – and the world – by storm a couple years back after a video posted on TikTok by a traffic management worker named Raana Te Hau went viral. I loved the 1News investigation on it.
Anyway, the mana wave is not the point.
I was fascinated with how touched people were by this small yet constant gesture of joy and goodwill. How much we appreciate a friendly interaction in the isolated world that we live in. How deeply the need for connection is sown into our beings.
“A cheerful look brings joy to the heart,” the writer of Proverbs says (15:13).
I think this traffic worker has a few lessons for us.
It cost him nothing except what was probably a sore arm by the end of the day. He had no agenda but to “send our community off with a smile”.
We’re built for relationship and made to spread and receive joy. “A cheerful heart is good medicine,” says another Proverb (17:22). It’s easy to underestimate the power of a small display of kindness. We don’t always see the impact it makes – but isn’t it interesting how eager Nelson motorists were to show their appreciation for this one traffic worker?
I wonder what small acts of joy could impact the people around us this week. How might you express a bit of delight in your neighbourhood?
Check out other articles in the
series below.
More articles in the
series are to come.
We have invited these writers to share their experiences, ideas and opinions in the hope that these will provoke thought, challenge you to go deeper and inspire you to put your faith into action. These articles should not be taken as the official view of the Nelson Diocese on any particular matter.
Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
Philippians 4:5
As I was making my way home the other day through Nelson’s five o'clock traffic, I slowed for some roadworks on Washington Road. As I passed traffic management workers, I noticed one young man amid the roadcones, helping to control the lights. He had the power to make me and all the other commuters stop... and go... and stop… and go. That's all he had to do, all day.
As cars passed him, he threw the most enthusiastic mana wave I’ve ever seen to each motorist, including me, and all the cars behind me. The following few times I drove through these roadworks I saw him doing the same. I observed other drivers tooting, sticking their thumbs up, winding down their windows to throw him a mana wave back. His enthusiasm did not waver all the time I saw him while that section of the road was being worked on. I appreciated his dedication to waving at every vehicle – from the old Mini to the giant Hilux.
One day my husband rang me out of the blue and excitedly asked, “Have you gotten a mana wave on the way home?” I didn’t need any further context to know who he was talking about.
Later, I saw a post about him in a Nelson community Facebook group, calling him “an absolute ray of sunshine”. This post has over 400 likes and dozens of comments (which is a lot in a private group for a small city like Nelson) bursting with appreciation. The young worker himself left a comment, saying he was “just hoping to send our community off with a smile and mana wave each day”.
I saw his face again after Nelson City Council filmed him to announce the end of reseal season on their Facebook page.
The mana wave isn’t new, but it did take the country – and the world – by storm a couple years back after a video posted on TikTok by a traffic management worker named Raana Te Hau went viral. I loved the 1News investigation on it.
Anyway, the mana wave is not the point.
I was fascinated with how touched people were by this small yet constant gesture of joy and goodwill. How much we appreciate a friendly interaction in the isolated world that we live in. How deeply the need for connection is sown into our beings.
“A cheerful look brings joy to the heart,” the writer of Proverbs says (15:13).
I think this traffic worker has a few lessons for us.
It cost him nothing except what was probably a sore arm by the end of the day. He had no agenda but to “send our community off with a smile”.
We’re built for relationship and made to spread and receive joy. “A cheerful heart is good medicine,” says another Proverb (17:22). It’s easy to underestimate the power of a small display of kindness. We don’t always see the impact it makes – but isn’t it interesting how eager Nelson motorists were to show their appreciation for this one traffic worker?
I wonder what small acts of joy could impact the people around us this week. How might you express a bit of delight in your neighbourhood?
Check out other articles in the
series below.
More articles in the
series are to come.
