Humanity Lost. Chapter Two. Part One

Coventry. A place so desolate and unforgiving, it was a wonder that anyone chose to live there at all. Even on a glorious summer’s day, the overbearing concreteness of the city centre turned the good faring ‘Coventarians’ into little more than stick men in a Lowry painting. And yet it was Coventry that would be the springboard to the rest of both my personal and professional life. So to the people of, and indeed the city of, Coventry, I’m sorry that I think its crap there, but thank you none the less.

How I ended up there is just one of those random events. I seem to recall I’d spotted an advert for volunteer support workers in a liberal read, The Guardian or Big Issue or something and thought, well, why not? I was desperate to give something back to people after what I’d considered a rough ride at University. For two of my three year degree, I’d struggled with my identity and in coming to terms with the past. I’d relied upon lots of different people to get me through it and had concluded that, with my fresh look upon life, I might be able to help people in the same way.

The actual open day event is more memorable in some ways than the two or three months that I lived in Coventry. It was on that day a seed was planted. Obviously the work had appealed; offering one to one support to students at the University who had one or many forms of disability, providing support for the everyday tasks that you and I take for granted, as well as help with actually completing their studies. The pay was non existent bar some weekly food vouchers and accommodation, but I’d pretty much made up my mind by the end of the three or so hour session that it was exactly what I wanted to do.

And of course, there was a girl. I suspect at some point within this story, you’ll note that to be a common theme. The details of this particular girl I’ll come to later, but it struck me at the open day at just how bubbly and attentive she was. Of me. I mean, I’d been out with girls and was in quite a serious relationship by the end of university, but this was something completely out of my safety net. She had spoken to me. Talked with me.

I couldn’t get the smile off my face. Even if I hadn’t seen her again (as fate chose to twist it, of course I would), it gave me a really positive vibe about the journey I was about to begin. Albeit in Coventry.