The kindness of strangers: On a busy motorway, my child vomited in the car. I was overwhelmed – then a man came with a bucket of water

‘Ten years have passed, but the memory of this incredible and selfless act still brings a tear to my eye.’ Illustration: Victoria Hart/Guardian design/Alamy

Kids always get sick at the worst possible time. For instance: in the middle of a busy motorway, one hour into a three-hour trip.

My husband was away for work and I was driving our two small children to see him, when one vomited in the back seat. I pulled into a slipway just off the motorway to try to clean up as best I could. The kids were too young to be trusted to sit there safely right next to a busy road, so I had to leave them strapped into the car seats while I tried to mop up the vomit with wet wipes. My son was inconsolable and the car was an absolute mess.