Thoughts from Italy- Another Possible Lockdown?

The world watched as Italy went through it’s lockdown in March learning what was coming their way and now,

Here we go again….. We all know it’s nearing and no matter how much we don’t want to believe another lockdown could happen again in Italy, the signs are all present that it will. We see the rise in positive cases and little by little new restrictions have been put in place once again limiting our freedom and hurting our businesses.

If there is another lockdown in Italy, what have we learned and how can we use it to prepare worldwide? How can we make positive future changes knowing and really believing, that this too shall pass?

Obviously, we are all not in the same situation.  Some people lose family and friends to Covid-19,  some people can easily manage with a loss of income while others are more vulnerable to being alone, isolated and losing time which is their devastating loss.  Each experience is unique and clearly real, but the one commonality is loss.

After the initial lockdown in Italy, we all picked ourselves up and started again fresh with motivation, re-found enjoyment and even open to new ideas that were unimaginable before. For example, take out and food delivery has never been a common practice in Italy, but has become necessary to keep restaurants afloat when in house dining options are unavailable.   Additionally, online marketing and shipping has become more popular to those establishments that used to rely solely on tourists who were readily available to shop in person.  Furthermore, remote working once unavailable to employees, has been proven to be effective with many companies which allow families to save on babysitting costs.

There are many positive things that can come out of hard times if we are open to them. Human connection to each other, sharing ideas, hopes and even worries are essential. During the prior lockdown, many have experienced distancing of friends while at the same time re-establishing and bonding with other friends who reached out to stay connected.

In Italy, many people ran to their balconies to participate in dance, music and show a sense of togetherness and support of one another during the prior lockdown. We showed we were united and can do it again, if necessary.

The near future may be uncertain, but what we can control is how we react to it and push forward. How do you want to fit in and make a difference for our future benefit?