ALLABOUTTHEBIGISSUE: Good Deed.

Good Deed.

By Graham Walker.

Edited By Uncle Monty.

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Graham Walker used to sell The Big Issue in various towns across

the South West. Now he sells his own 'Bigger Issue' magazine for

a Guinea and a smile. He is also a writer, his memoirs are published

as 'Unsettled' (Tangent Books) as well as fundraising thousands of

pounds for various charities. From his pitch Graham has

seen and heard it all, now you can benefit from his knowledge

by asking him for some advice on any matter ...

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Good, bad or indifferent?

Be it good, bad or indifferent, every interaction we make
with others will have an effect; an effect we will often be
unaware of, an effect with the potential to leave a wake that
can snowball, and ultimately, adjust the lives of many. Do
one good deed and it has the potential to appear a miracle,
one bad deed, the potential to court unmitigated disaster.

Even indifference; a non-deed, has the potential to propagate,
to propagate yet more indifference. On the latter I have an
example. It involves a disused letter box, a shiny red post
box, a Big Issue pitch, the general public, and me!

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The Good Showman The Graham Walker Is!!

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But here, I do need to interject. This is a message to all Big

Issue vendors. On occasion, stood on your pitch, you will

meet up with the opportunity to assist a member of that

public; help them on their way, do a good deed. Well

proceed with caution. A percentage of the population

- from personal experience - deem we are all ne’er do

wells, miscreants, drug addicts, misfits and thieves

(I’ve a feeling they don’t like us). To help one of

these people out can seriously mess up their heads;

non-contributors to society? . . . contributing?

Consequently, the response to your good deed will

often be vastly different than that you’d expected.
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Selling The Stinking Big Issue!

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My first memorable attempt at ‘good-deeding’ happened

when I was on my pitch in Plymouth some years ago. A

man walked past me. ‘Big Issue sir?’ He didn’t respond.

He then walked to the cashpoint down the road and

withdrew some money. Grabbing his cash, he walked off,

inadvertently dropping a tenner on the floor behind him.

I ran down the road, grabbed the tenner and shouted

after him. “Oy mate”. He looked back, and presuming

I was employing a rather pro-active sales technique,

shouted, “No”.

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I tried again. “But sir you. . . .”, “No!” he repeated. I

started running after him, frantically waving his tenner
in the air. But when he saw me running, he started run-

ning himself! “But sir you’ve dropped a tenner” I

yelled. No response. After a couple of hundred yards

I slowly started gaining on him. So he started sprinting,

slicing his way through the busy shoppers with a slalom

effect. He was good, damn good.

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In retrospect, I’m sure had I persisted, what with my re-
nowned staying power and deft turn of foot, I would
have undoubtedly caught him. But hey, what the hell.

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Now I do apologise, but that interjection has cleaned me
right out of column inches. So please do call by next
week when I’ll get back to the story.

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http://thebigissueman.blogspot.com/

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He Walks & Talks Like A Stuffed Pig, He Does!

The Homeless Detest Him ... The Big Issue's

Anthony John Bird (Shown Below).