Going on my trike and also in the wheelchair has taught me a precious lesson. Now, all those people that we look beyond or above have become the eyes that I meet. There is an invisible, often unseen group of people that I now see and share smiles with. I can’t believe it’s taken this long for me to see them.

In the past I have always tried to look at people in wheelchairs but very few smiled back. Now, as I am in their world, they connect with me.

I wonder who your crowd is; who are the people you best relate to? It might be your colleagues at work, the people commiserating with you as you meet eyes across shopping trolleys or pushchairs, the fellow supporters watching a sports match, the singers sitting behind or beside you in a choir. These are your people; this is your audience.

I got the best smile this weekend from an elderly woman being pushed along in a wheelchair. It was like she was saying, ‘I see you, you see me.’ What a joy. Getting alongside someone can be the best gift you can give them. If it’s a child, crouch down to their level. If it’s a colleague, listen to their problems over a cup of tea. If it’s a fellow music or sports lover, meet their eye and join their applause

I do hope that if I’m ever on my feet again, I’ll remember how much my waist-level audience appreciated being shown that they are not alone, and never forgotten. I read this morning about ‘participatory suffering’. Can you find someone who you can share that with? To know that someone else has been where you are is a comfort in itself.

Now my question for you is, who is your audience?

Are you looking in the right place for it?