‘Se questo è un uomo’ (if this is a man), Primo Levi’s book recounting his experiences as a prisoner at Auschwitz (he only managed to survive because his chemistry knowledge was considered useful by the Nazis in their death factory of Birkenau) describes how people placed in an impossibly horrible situation under a ruthlessly inhuman oppressor will not necessarily club together as a solidarity but egotistically fight it out among themselves for personal survival: it’s the ‘I’m all right Jack’ attitude or ‘let me snatch it from you before you snatch it from me’ policy.

I’m wondering how many of us in the present situation are pretending to be in cohesion with their local communities and how many are really on the egotistical agenda. True, the scams are coming out: dud testing equipment sold at exaggerated prices, conning knocks on the doors of houses belonging to elderly residents and so on. Fortunately, however, the trend everywhere seems to be to help others as least as much as helping oneself in the present emergency.

Nowhere is this more visible in Bagni di Lucca where voluntary organizations such as Gemma Fazzi’s Auser Filo d’Argento are busy making health masks and organizing food distribution for vulnerable families in these difficult times. Especially welcome have been the chocolate Easter eggs and Easter Colombine (dove-shaped cakes) made and distributed to children and their families by local temporarily closed bars and  volunteer associations. As the Italian saying goes: “Con un piccolo grande gesto si può generare tanta felicità” : every litte bit helps.

In the UK at this present moment the big issues are the high mortality rates from Covid-19 in care homes and the continued lack of PPE supplies. The fact is that this crisis is being directed by a caretaker government in lieu of the PM being able to resume his front seat in the operations. However, in the UK, too, there has been an increased sense of community values in order to combat the very difficult situations the horrible virus has put most the world in:

A couple of days ago in the continuing days of the extraordinarily lovely weather London has been having we did our weekly shopping using a very pleasant alternative route: that along the Grand Union Canal.

London has a canal mileage at least as equal to that of Venice. Indeed , there’s a part of the canal  in Paddington which is called ‘little Venice’. However, do not think you’re likely to emerge into anything like Piazza San Marco!

The government warns about doing only strictly necessary journeys. On this one we combined three highly necessary reasons: shopping for food, need for exercise and mental therapy!

Incidentally, I’m glad to note that even the Canada geese are respecting social distancing…

(Photograph suggested by Alexandra Pettitt)