Roll With The Punches.

I doubt any one of us could have predicted this turn of events. We are almost in the 3rd month of 2020 and so far its safe to say this has been one of the most shocking years yet. Last November, Venice, where I currently reside was hit by an extreme level of Acqua Alta not seen since the 1960s. Acqua Alta, or High Tides, as it is referred to in English, are the exceptional tide peaks that occur in the northern Adriatic Sea. The peak reaches their maximum in the Venetian Lagoon, and they flood the many islands of Venice. Many shops and businesses were damaged, people lost their homes, and a few people even died. It was a devastating tragedy and yet people learned to bounce back from this and come back stronger. The Venetian carnival was supposed to be a time of great celebration and it would have been the first major celebration after surviving the mercurial tides of late last year. However, no one could have guessed that the thing which has hindered this celebration was in fact disease.

I am fairly certain most of you have heard of Corona Virus, if anything its hard to find news which is not about this phenomenon. The virus has spread throughout the Lombardy and Veneto Regions in Italy in a sudden boom. We are all urged to stay home and keep safe in order to mitigate the spread of this illness. Less for ourselves but more to protect the more venerable members of society for instance, the elderly, or infants. Schools and businesses have closed and indeed the carnival too has been cancelled. All of Northern Italy is in disarray, with the country having the third highest number of victims just after South Korea. I hope that this matter with be resolved soon and of course my thoughts and prayers are with people who are directly affected by this situation. Recklessness sometimes takes hold of us and many see this as an excuse to travel, party and drink but being part of a society means at times taking measures to protect those in society. I hope we can all keep that in mind the next time we decide to go to a club night in the midst of a highly contagious virus.

I am sure we can all adapt, and in the age of the internet I am sure we can continue to live on in a way which can still be beneficial to us. Let’s use this moment as a time for self reflection and also to call your loved ones.

Photo Courtesy of : @ingeborggg