‘ ’ j TEA M TALK

Mistake is met with warm welcome

Claire Brine gives her take on a story catching the attention of War Cry reporters

LAST year TikToker Pavlina Livingstone-Sudrich made the mistake of telling her followers that Wales was in England. She sparked such an online backlash that the first minister of Wales invited her to visit the country.

According to a report on the BBC website, Pavlina – who comes from Yukon, one of the smallest of Canada’s three territories –regularly creates TikTok videos that document her ‘outdoor adventures’. More than 210,000 followers enjoy watching the clips. But after she uploaded content in which she claimed that her hotwater bottle carrier – made by an online friend – was from ‘Wales, England’, the video went viral. It wasn’t long before Mark Drakeford suggested she visit the country to see ‘just how different it is’.

During Pavlina’s Welsh tour, she took in the sights of Cardiff, Brecon and Anglesey. She described the country as ‘incredibly beautiful’. But, she added, ‘the best part of Wales is at the dining table with people who are from there – so keen and warm and inviting’.

How people make us feel matters

It warmed my heart to read that the kindness of the Welsh people had such a positive impact on Pavlina – interestingly, even more positive than the sights she visited. I then found myself reflecting on a variously worded and variously attributed saying: ‘People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.’

When I look back over different periods in my life, I’m aware that I have forgotten a lot of the detail – but I can remember clearly the emotions I experienced. How people make us feel matters.

It always has done. Jesus spoke often about the importance of being kind, inclusive and forgiving to others. ‘Love your neighbour,’ he said. ‘And your enemies.’ He knew that the way we treat people can affect how they feel – and how they feel can, in turn, affect how they treat others in future.

Jesus’ words continue to pose a challenge, because, if we were to follow his teaching, who knows the positive impact we could have on people all over the world?