This is one of the key reasons we started the Dangerous Globe back in 2016, was to share stuff from around the world and give everyone a chance to read things not normally written in English.
Below is a translation of a translation, the original is an Italian lady with a lovely mind, Irene Velle, and her story/poem was translated into Dutch by Susan Blanco
We took it a stage further.
I have a feeling that this could make the world a nicer and less Dangerous Globe after all
BUT THE SPRING DIDN’T KNOW…
It was the beginning of 2020…
the people had a long dark winter behind them
February was a restless month, with many storms and heavy rains
Nature was unsettled, as if it wanted to tell us something
…it was as if nature wanted to warn us of something
And then it was March
March 2020
The streets were empty, most shops were closed
most of our cars stood at the side of the road, unused.
people almost never went outside
all over the world, entire nations went into lock down
we didn’t really believe it, it seemed surreal, but it happened,
we all knew what was going on.
But the Spring didn’t know
the Flowers bloomed, the Sun shone
the first beautiful spring day for a long time had arrived
Swallows came back, and the sky was coloured blue, evenings got lighter, and in the morning, the light arrived ever earlier through the window
March 2020
Students were studying alone online
children had no choice but to play at home… adolescents were bored…parents didn’t know what to do
people only left their homes to fetch groceries or walk dogs
offices, hotels,restaurants, football matches and bars, almost everything was closed,
The army began to guard exits and borders
people began working from home, business people ran into problems
and most children couldn’t go to school
Suddenly there was no more room in the Hospitals, all routine procedures and surgeries were stopped
Everybody knew
But the Spring didn’t know
she sprouted and blossomed, completing her incredible yearly display
she treated us to her very best flowers, and the scent that they gave us
it was March 2020
Everyone sat at home, quarantined, either for their own health or as a precaution for others,
some people could no longer go to work, everyone was uncertain, insecure
hugging, kissing or even shaking hands had suddenly become dangerous, a threat
everybody had to keep a safe distance from each other, which was horrible
supermarket shelves were empty and all the enjoyable things had stopped,
a line had been drawn, and nobody knew when it would be removed
people had their freedom limited, though there was a peace
All over the world people fell ill … it was highly contagious
There was isolation, sickness and panic…
…and the fear became even more real
The days all seemed to be the same..and weeks grew even longer
everybody hoped that there would be no more regulations
No more harsh restrictions
people were acting as though trapped in a movie, waiting for the hero to arrive
The world was ‘Delayed” but this was not a holiday journey
Nobody expected this
Yet everybody knew
But the Spring didn’t know
and the roses carried on flowering
magnolia buds got bigger
birds got busy building their nests
And then…
The pleasure of cooking and eating together was rediscovered
everyone was busy with tips for things to do at home with the children
it was again time to write, and to read, people let their imaginations run wild
boredom turned into creativity
Some people learned a new language, some discovered art
Some discovered that they hadn’t really been living, and found a path back to themselves
Some stopped pointlessly arguing
everybody, from one day to the next, had found more time for their families.
one closed the office and opened a Café for 4 people
others left their rusted-up relationships to seek a new Love of their Life
or offered to fetch groceries or cook for vulnerable people
everybody suddenly knew what a “Vital Occupation” really was
These people became heroes, and were valued more than ever before
people played music with each other, or sang in harmony with each other…from different places… so that they could be together.
some kept an eye open for loneliness, and tried to do something about it.
and some people actually started to recover from their stressful lives
total strangers spontaneously began to talk to each other
some made and flew paper aeroplanes out of windows with their phone numbers on them, the lonely finders could call that number for a chat
Governments helped business and people financially, stopping bankruptcies and unemployment
retired care personnel offered to return and help with caring for the sick
Life appeared from everywhere to volunteer and offer help, everybody wanted to do something
At 8 pm each evening millions of people worldwide people stopped what they were doing and opened windows, loudly applauding the doctors, nurses and care givers
those people that had lived dangerously while working tirelessly to keep hospitals open and people alive
it was the year in which the importance of health and connection, of togetherness and of social contacts,, maybe even of his calling, was recognized
This did something to everybody
The economy almost went down, but it didn’t stop, it just reinvented itself
It was the year when the world seemed to stop, but also the year when we would all come together in the history books …
We all knew
But the Spring didn’t know
And the flowers kept on blooming
And the trees burst into life
And it got much warmer
And there were more and more birds
And then…came the day of freedom
everyone watched TV, we were told that the Emergency had passed
The Virus had lost and the whole of society, working together, had won
everyone took to the streets…tears in their eyes, no more gloves and masks, neighbors hugging like they were brothers and sisters
the world was more beautiful than ever, with the people more human and loving
They had recovered their values, and their norms, peoples hearts were open again…only to positive consequences, not negatives
Because everything had stood still, Mother earth could breathe again, she too was healing from some of the things we did to her
And then came the summer
(because spring didn’t even know she was still there)
despite everything
despite the virus
despite the dead
Even though the spring did not know
everyone finally learned the power of love and life
Another great site by the Dangerous Globe
