EVERY week I stop for a short chat with my local Big Issue seller to buy a magazine which, by the way, is full of great articles and a decent crossword.

Over the past eight months I’ve got to know my Big Issue seller quite well, and she’s a lovely, positive, interesting person to talk with.

It’s really depressing then, to see people just pass her and other sellers by, without even nod or a hello to acknowledge they are even there.

Is this because we find it uncomfortable reflecting on the comfort many of us enjoy in our own lives? Because we’d rather pretend our society isn’t one of inequality?

Because we know our world is precarious and one day it could be us?

Or maybe we just don’t know what to say? It’s worse still to hear how few magazines are sold sometimes - especially when you think of how much we all spend on non-essential items when shopping (often when passing by a Big Issue seller who may be outside a store).

Buying the magazine is a choice and I understand not everyone will choose to buy one, but I’d urge people to at least consider it.

Buying the magazine has a hugely positive impact in allowing people - who for various reasons come to sell it - to earn and make their own living and bring about change for themselves and their families.

If you don’t want to buy a magazine at least say hi, offer a nod, or a wave. When someone is stood working all day it will at least remind them they are visible and that people care - it’s about treating others how we’d like to be treated.

None of us go to work all day and get ignored.

You may even find you have an interesting chat or have learned something new or feel you yourself have done something positive for someone else. So next time you pass a seller, don’t be afraid to at least say hi!

Name and address supplied.