Anghiari si racconta

We heard about the virus from the news on tv. We were worried, but Anghiari is a small town, so, at the very beginning, it didn’t hit us. Then, on March 11th, the Italian state declared a lockdown – people had to stay at home, use masks, disinfection … everything connected with the arrival of this epidemic. Only the essential services could stay open.

Since I belonged to those essential services, I continued working during the whole period. Office workers, many others, worked from home; everything was closed. The surreal thing was to see closed shops, and the people, there were no people, a town… from time to time one could see some of those who live here, very few. At that point we realized that the situation was dire. It is difficult to explain what was shown on tv, in the cities, in Arezzo, everybody at home, empty streets, no traffic – una cosa brutta (a terrible thing). When we went shopping, we had to queue up, and we had to take with us a declaration stating our reasons for being out.

Nursing homes were closed, relatives could see their beloved only on videocalls. For the elders it was very, very (pesante) traumatic, psychologically, emotionally. My daughter, Fabiola, was working as a physiotherapist in one of these residences in Pieve, and she said that old people suffered a lot for lack of contact, a caress, a hug.

What I missed most in that period, that lasted till June 4th, were people’s smiles, their hugs. Under the mask, we spoke with our eyes … talking about it, I feel emotional even now. When, after a long time, things opened up a bit, people viewed each other with suspicion, with fear, with fear. That was terrible. Now, we are almost going back to normality, but, for a long time, on meeting someone, a friend, I would ask ‘Can I hug you?’. I cried the first time when, after many months, I hugged someone. Of course, we wanted to hug family and friends, but we didn’t want to be a source of contagion. And when she said ‘yes’ – it was Loredana, who does photocopies in the piazza – ‘yes, let’s embrace each other’, I cried, I felt we were going back to normality, I felt the other person … I don’t know how to explain it.

The other thing I really missed was the morning espresso in the bar. Normally, mid-morning, I have a break, a coffee and a pastry, but after bars closed on March 11th, I took a snack from home. The smell, the flavour of coffee made in a bar is different from the Moka pot I have at home. And so, when, for the first time, I saw Gennaro back in his bar, a few days before the official opening, I went up to him and said ‘Gennaro how much I have missed your coffee’ and he replied ‘come here’ and made me a coffee, free. It was a moment of joy.

We started to hug people again as soon as shops reopened, more than a year later, in 2022 … the whole of 2020, ’21 … yes 2 years later. Something strange happened with the concept of time, we lost reference points, ’19, ’20…. From ’21 there were no more lockdowns, but we still had masks and lots of restrictions.

We felt alone. Usually, in my job, I meet many people, we have a word or two, a laugh. But, then, it felt like being in one of those metaphysical paintings with views of empty cities, without people, only buildings, brutto. To see restaurants, bars closed… the loneliness. In those moments, you realized the importance of human contact – we are social beings, we need each other, to talk, to exchange greetings, even to argue with, sometimes.

Fortunately, almost all shops in Anghiari survived, some with the support provided by the state, although for many all over Italy, it has been very tragic. Since last year, here in Anghiari, there has been a desire to be together again. Already, last summer, we had various initiatives, like the return of the market on Wednesdays, with stalls in the piazza, which gets crowded, and music being played in the evenings. People come from all around Anghiari and the Sansepolcro valley. The first 2 years people were scared, we couldn’t gather in big numbers, we had to keep a distance in restaurants. Those were lonely years, ’20-’21. If you coughed or sneezed you were looked at with suspicion, like there was a plague! Tourists didn’t come for 2 years, we couldn’t go to nearby towns or move from region to region. There were not many people around; then after 2 years slowly we started again.

Italian schools closed longer than anywhere else in Europe, so for school children, particularly for adolescents, it was the worst time, 2 years of their life were stolen, important years, for the friendships, the relationships. Those are wonderful years, which will be remembered for the rest of our lives, of first loves, school outings, being part of a community.

Something positive that came out of this time was that I started to paint again. I did this because I was stressed: vaccination was mandatory for people with my kind of job, but I was perplexed, I had reservations about the vaccinations. In the end, I had to capitulate and get vaccinated. In that very troubled time, I restarted to paint landscapes – it helps me. The colours go to the eyes, then to the brain and make me feel serene. Things we do with our hands really help a lot. I also do embroideries and crocheting, activities that make me feel well. In the evenings, while I listen to the tv, I work, I must always have something on the go.

These activities gave me ideas for a project for when I retire next year. I’m calling it ‘Paola Ape Art’. I work with an Ape car, and children love it, like my grandchild, Leonardo. On Saturdays, he comes to have breakfast with me and he always wants to have a ride on the Ape. I knew it was illegal, but you can’t resist a grandchild! I had a problem with the Comune about this. I have now bought my own Ape, and Leonardo has already come for a ride. When I retire, my plan is to drive to a scenic spot in Anghiari and demonstrate my hobbies, show how to use our hands, and perhaps sell my art.