Sometimes it's the little things that have the biggest impact. In this week's round-up of positive news, read about a man who "brings a bit of sunshine" to people's day by sticking letters around cities worldwide.
Today's positive pick
Have you ever noticed a letter from a stranger posted on a wall, lamppost or letterbox around Brussels?
When going through a tough time himself, a British street writer decided to start composing notes for passers-by to brighten up their day. He leaves these wherever he goes and has already written more than 400 across Belgium alone.
Jay Ventress (27), a camera engineer and author who hails from rural Yorkshire in northern England, moved to Melbourne (Australia) with his girlfriend as the pandemic broke out in March 2020. "That's when the letter concept started," he told The Brussels Times.
His loneliness was exacerbated by insults from locals and the uninspiring jobs he undertook to make ends meet. Ventress tells of his emotional struggle that he wished to express somehow. Inspired by the song 'People Are Strange' by The Doors, he decided to write a letter to a stranger, imagining what he wished a stranger would write to him. He pinned this up for all to see.
Days later, he came across it again and remarked a profound impact: although Ventress had written the letter himself, he wasn't 'invisible' anymore and felt somehow connected. One letter gave birth to a large-scale project, which has become the subject of his third book 'Dear Stranger, Origins' (out in January). In it, Ventress describes the letters as a "cry for help", and his effort "to understand the struggle of others to find a way to cure my own."
Credit: Jay Ventress / Canva
The young writer quickly became friends with the homeless community in Melbourne, who shared words of wisdom with him and whose stories inspired many of his letters.
One day, he remembers seeing a homeless man lying in the middle of the street. Drivers honked their horns and shouted aggressively at him, but the man leapt up and exclaimed, "finally they can see me! I'm not invisible anymore!" Ventress likens the sight to the effect his first letter had on him.
He now posts letters on walls and lampposts wherever he goes. Over the past three years, strangers have found thousands of his notes in cities worldwide, from Melbourne, New York, and Manchester, York and Hull in the UK to Kraków in Poland, and Brussels, Ghent and Antwerp. He has posted 401 letters in Belgium in the last week alone.
'Dear Stranger'
The letters are addressed to passers-by and begin with "Dear Stranger". They address a number of themes, from dreams and loneliness to anxiety and city portraits. Some are copies, but he never leaves the same letter in the same neighbourhood.
At the end of each letter, he leaves his Instagram handle (@jaytheauthor) so people can connect with him and let him know if they have found a letter. He has received around 1,000 messages from fellow strangers and tries to reply to them all. The messages detail the impact of the letters on people's lives, with some even saving citizens from suicide.
In the past week, one Instagram user from Belgium wrote: "I saw one of your letters today. It was really needed as I've been struggling with anxiety and it's got more intense in recent weeks. I was off to class with a heavy heart but took the time to read your letter. It made me feel less alone under this grey sky."
Another from Leuven wrote: "I am having a bad today and your letter brought some sunshine to it."
A portrait of Brussels through a wanderer's eyes. Credit: @jaytheauthor / Instagram
Of all the places Ventress has left letters, Brussels has been the most responsive by far, with 20 to 30 people sending him heartfelt messages on social media each day. He didn't expect such a response to his English-language letters from the European capital. But he believes that the reason that they have been so well received is because Brussels is the "crossroads of the world": a melting pot of open-minded strangers who come from all over.
The best part of the project has been the friends he has made throughout, he says. The letters have brought him to new places, with one of his first in Australia leading to an invitation to New York. Indeed, he met all of his current best friends through these letters.
'Hang in there'
Jay's dream is to create a Brussels-based exhibition with his letters one day, where he can share his story of how the project began and the impact it has had on his life and the lives of so many others across the globe.
"People think we have to do big things to change the world but every little action, no matter how small, can make a difference in somebody's day."
To anyone struggling, he says: "Hang in there, the wave of hardship will pass because a wave never lasts forever, it has to settle at some point. And all the beatings, the hardships, the suffering you've endured, it all creates wisdom. Keep fighting."
Got some good news to share? Let @izzyvivs know!
Do you need help?
Those in need of a listening ear or with any questions about suicide can contact the Suicide Line anonymously on the toll-free number 1813
02 648 40 14 in (English)
0800 32 123 (French)
www.zelfmoord1813.be (Dutch)
Other stories to make you smile:
1. Spreading happiness in Huy: Belgian woman knits 160 dolls for neighbours
A Belgian woman from the village of Tihange in Huy (Liège province) has made a name for herself by distributing hand-knitted dolls to her neighbours as good luck charms. Read more here.
2. Christmas tree arrives on Brussels Grand Place
By biblical coincidence, the tree was taken from the garden of 87-year-old Maria, who lives in Lier, Antwerp, and her late husband Jozef. Read more here.
3. Belgian techno DJ voted best in the world for fourth year in a row
For the fourth year in a row, Belgian DJ Charlotte De Witte (31) has been voted the 'best techno DJ' in the world by the British trade magazine DJ Mag. Read more here.
4. From Brussels to Bratislava: Daily rail connection between Belgium and Slovakia under discussion
Czech railway company Leo Express has plans to launch a railway link between Belgium and Slovakia, with the trains stopping in Germany and the Czech Republic along the way. Read more here.
5. Herve cheese named Wallonia's Cheese of the Year 2023
The Herve cheese is one of the few Walloon food products and the only Belgian cheese to have gained the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) label. Read more here.
