Well, here we are again, commencing lockdown #2 in Italy. Last week at this time we (Tuscany) had been moved from yellow zone (good) to orange (not as good). Just days later we were moved to red zone (bad!) & then about 48 hours later (yesterday, Sunday) the heavy restrictions became enforced. In a nutshell, all bars & restaurants are closed except for takeout & delivery. All non-essential shops, museums and cinemas are closed. All schooling is online except for 6th grade & younger (YES, Caiden does keep dodging that bullet!!). There is a law in Italy that says children under 12 (6th grade & younger) cannot be left alone so the government is taking mercy on two working parent households & sparing the youngest kids (for now) so that Mom and Dad can continue working. We can go to the grocery store, pharmacy & even the hair salon & employees can go to work, provided we have the proper documentation/self-declaration form if we're stopped by polizia. We can also walk, run or ride our bike, alone, within a close proximity of our home. Our nationwide curfew of 10 pm to 5 am continues.
This lockdown is ever-so-slightly less restrictive than the last (i.e. hair salons open, young children still permitted to attend in-person school, ability to exercise near your home), but it's pretty rough all the same-- & just as we're inching toward the holidays. There are many, myself included, who are hoping these strong measures will produce significant enough results/reduction in the virus numbers in order to save Christmas & allow folks to gather, shop, celebrate & enjoy. I have an individual, added agenda: Stephen is slated to arrive December 5th & I'm crossing all fingers & toes that things will be good enough that a) he can fly here so we can all be together & b) we're able to do a bit more than sit in our house & stare at one another (although after being apart for 2 months I'm totally ok with just-the-3-of-us time, if it comes to that).
The good news is I'm not 1/10th as freaked out this time as I was last time. In March Coronavirus was so unknown & Italy seemed, for a little while, to be a sinkhole by itself (well, along with China). Not to mention my hubby was traveling in The States where it was sunshine, rainbows & butterflies & as I tried to explain the intensity & stress of the situation, & how urgently I needed him to come back, he thought I'd lost my mind. He gave me some placating "it'll be oks" & "you're overthinking its" as he returned my worried calls between dinners out & cocktails at the bar with friends... This time I've got more sighs than stress & a resignation to the regulations, knowing it's the only way our situation might improve.
Interestingly, as I chat with friends in the US I understand that many counties are currently red 'tier', also. I read what red means at home & must say, it's a bit of a joke. Restaurant capacity reduced to 25%.... retail stores to 50%... movie theaters to 25% capacity... gyms to 10%. Really?! These new regulations are like a little slap on the hand in the face of a big problem. It's like "ok folks, our Covid numbers are soaring, but go ahead & do what you always do but hey, let's please just have fewer of you doing it at the same time". HOW is that going to stop the spread? The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over & over again yet expecting a different result. Are you aware of this Newsome? Trump? Truckee Town Council??
I'm not one bit happy to be confined to our home for who knows how many weeks & I'm even less happy about the prospect that Caiden may soon be chained to a computer with online learning. But, I'm very happy & proud that Italy is doing something, taking strict measures, enforcing significant fines (a fellow parent at Caiden's school, unfortunately, received a 400 Euro ticket for grocery shopping outside her commune/region). Italy is trying to save lives & get the country's wellbeing to a better place-- rather than allowing everyday life to sail along, with a few teensy restrictions & continuing to hope the virus fairies will magically decrease numbers & stop the spread. Haven't the last 8 months proven this hasn't/doesn't/won't work?
There's a little part of me, perhaps my fight or flight bone, that has momentarily wondered if we ought to go back to the US. Should we run back to the safety of our country & home... be with Steph & the dogs & tuck away on our peaceful & protective 20 acres? While it sounds tempting - mainly the Steph & dogs part - both Caiden & I don't want to go anywhere. This time, we want to see things through as I was utterly consumed with regret when we returned in the spring. We should have stuck it out because, after all, when the lockdown lifts, & someday it will, we'll still be living in bella Italia -- marvelous, wonderful, delightful, delectable Italy, & our adventure will continue.
I also wasn't naive & knew this was likely coming so I packed our days, weekends & vacations with lots of Italy fun, ticking any possible item off my "I'd really like to" list. The Cinque Terre stay/hike, the vacation in Puglia, the day trip to Val D'Orcia, the dinners out in il centro, sunset monk chanting at San Miniato al Monte, Sunday service at il Duomo di Firenze, walks & bike rides with girlfriends, stops in shops for early-bought Natale (Christmas) gifts, purchasing a few extra rolls of TP & boxes of dried pasta from the local market; yeah, Covid, take your shot, but this time I'm armed & ready!
We'll take this temporary setback & graciously put our explorations on pause & ease back into the familiar groove of games, movies, music, bread-making, reading, relaxing, running, walking, writing, etc. And we'll patiently await the time red turns to orange & orange to yellow. After all, these days there's a red tier for you, a red zone for me, a lockdown for just about everybody.
Stay safe, friends & keep doing the right things, keep doing your part.
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