People who help us

Oh look, there's a member of the station rescue service calling through to the Central Control Room. Yes, he's seeking authorisation to enter the train track by means of a three metre pole with a hook on the end. Thanks, Shark. Thanks for testing the train system of Hong Kong by ejecting your 'sketch book of bamboo' out the train doors onto the live rails below. At ten minutes to rush hour.

Thanks to mama too, I feel, for hunting up and down the station platform trying to locate the man with the pole to retrieve the sketchbook, when her rudimentary Cantonese language skills start with the number three and end at the word for toilet. But I can make dramatic hand gestures, and point, which helps.

I suppose I could turn it all into some sort of personal and social education in a lesson called 'People who help us'.

I would also have to include the passing gentleman in the park at Sha Tin, merely one hour beforehand, who waded knee high into the turtle pond to gallantly retrieve Tiger's bracelet - the one she managed to bounce off a turtle head into the waters below, possibly by enthusiastic bracelet squeezing in delight at seeing turtles in the first place.

I may also have to thank the man who let Squirrel out of the turnstile when she got stuck, the young woman behind us at the 'add value to your Octopus card' machine who couldn't take any more of us faffing around and simply did the job for us, and the entire population of Lamma, who still manage to turn a blind eye and deaf ear to the yelling and screaming that emanates from the house when ownership of the yellow crayon is in dispute.

Thank you all, people of Hong Kong. You are most helpful. (I'm still not sure about the elderly woman with the bottle and hanky though. I think she had good intentions.)