Having been brought up in Tuscany, sheltered by the Apuan Alps and elated by the crisp lure of the Tyrrhenian Sea, the magic of Forte dei Marmi proved strategically influential from the onset. Always a much-loved destination by the happy few, the sense of occasion was palatable everywhere: the queen of the Belgians part and parcel of the local folklore, so my nursery school was in the very beautiful villa she was born, and meanwhile at that early age one is not aware of such mundane elements, the beauty of the villa and the vast grounds seemed extremely kind and felt very natural. 

Beauty all around, to accompany the first steps, glamour and understated elegance at arm's length; later the discovery of a much wider and even more beautiful world just a stone is thrown (Lucca and it’s ramparts, the magic of Florence and the many other beautiful sites Tuscany is fabled for all around).

The youngest one in a very close-knit cast family gave me a wide and varied range of interests that, in looking back, were not what one would expect in a child.

The above brings me to when, some time ago, my parents shared that they lived the progress of my childhood with a constant sense of wonderment - at times veiled by a tinge of dismay for the sheer volume - of my ability to always surprise them with my many quests and requests... more about that in a separate story.

Having an inquisitive mind can be a plus: eagerness to learn, openminded outlook and a good dose of curiosity at the base of continued self-discovery, always ready to move to new dimensions and not leave opportunities to pass by unconsidered. A balanced take of how to juggle it all - a must! - not to become overwhelmed by it all. 

Too much of anything, even a very good thing, almost as bad as the counterpart.... and how to harness one’s enthusiasm the most important part of the whole process. And as a child one is always pushing to brake barriers from the onset... crying the most immediate and primordial memory: and quick-witted babies promptly learn that single squill can often alert the whole household to their deep ends... hungry? need changing?!! unwell???!!!? 

Later on, one learns that a similar result of prompt attention can be deployed with a coy smile.... a much less exhausting deployment of energies for - if done to full effect - teaches the lucky baby the basics of their first steps into power games. 

The poor parents - especially with their firstborn - the ideal audience. And from these first discoveries, the sky the limit in the quest of supremacy, and not sure who in this play of many acts, who is landed with the best part.

Plagues, famines and wars have devastated the world many times, but for the first time ever in history, the whole world is sharing the same quest for the best way to face the conditions imposed by the virus with the ability to communicate wide and large. 

As we are perfecting skills on Zoom, considering whether to join the TikTok community whilst managing our days of isolation, governments are flexing their muscles, scientists squeezing their brains, activists crusading away....  and yet it is up to each one of us to make a difference in our own little sphere of influence.

The call for action to contain the pandemic arrived in close succession around the globe: recommendations and in most cases new rules have been deployed in each country in different ways, and too many of us might not have been able to commence to size the individual circumstances these no longer so new conditions, might have affected the ones in our circle of people we love - let it alone globally.

Let’s stop devoting excessive time following news broadcasts, projections and forecasts: too easy being over-informed at this time of such conflicting vibrations, not producing a positive outcome, most likely it resolves into generating over anxiety when we should stay centred and focused.

On the other hand, we could consider investing part of that newly found time to think of how we could make a difference, somehow and somewhere, for someone who might benefit from knowing they are not alone in this! 

For the ones sitting at home, blessed with no major issues, what could be nicer than to bring a ray of hope there where might be most needed now: charity begins at home, and a kind word, a smile or simple attention to our close one should come naturally..... and yet we might forget to do so.

Let’s learn to look at the full picture and before looking even a little further afield of our own immediate self, why not ask yourself if you are serene: we are entitled to feel supported and cared for, and hopefully, you are. In case you are not, briefly ask yourself what would make you reasonably happy, and your imagination might bring an instant smile. I used ‘briefly’ for a reason: these are not times to go too deep or too far...  if you still cannot find a smile, speak to someone positive in your life, near or far, express to them your concerns and you will find that often this could be enough; hearing yourself voicing your concerns to settle down, in a more comfortable zone.

Sent during global lockdown...

Quite possibly for the first time ever in history, the whole world is sharing the same quest for the best way to face the conditions imposed by the virus... governments are flexing their muscles, scientists squeezing their brains, activists crusading away and yet it is up to each one of us to make a difference in our own little sphere of influence.

The call for action to contain the pandemic arrived in close succession around the globe: recommendations and in most cases new rules have been deployed in each country in a different way, and too many of us might not have been able to commence to imagine the individual circumstances these no longer so new conditions might have affected the ones in our circle of people we love - let it alone globally.

Let’s stop devoting excessive time following news broadcasts, projections and forecasts: too easy being over-informed at this time of such conflicting vibrations, not producing a positive outcome, most likely it resolves into generating over anxiety when we should stay centred and focused. 

On the other hand, we could consider investing part of that newly found time to think of how we could make a difference, somehow and somewhere, for someone who might benefit from knowing they are not alone in this! 

For the ones sitting at home, blessed with no major issues, what could be nicer than to bring a ray of hope there where might be most needed now. 

Charity begins at home, and a kind word, a smile or simple attention to our close one should come naturally..... and yet we might forget to do so. Let’s learn to look at the full picture and before looking even a little further afield of our own immediate self, ask yourself if you are serene: we are entitled to feel supported and cared for, and hopefully, you are. In case you are not, briefly ask yourself what would make you reasonably happy, and your imagination might bring an instant smile. I used ‘briefly’ for a reason as these are not times to go too deep or too far...  if you still cannot find a smile, speak to someone positive in your life, near or far, express to them your concerns and you will find that often this could be enough; hearing yourself voicing your concerns to settle down in a more comfortable zone, and before saying goodbye, do not forget to offer your help at any time, and you’ll realise that you have already made a difference in someone else’s life, it just takes a call! 

Sent during global lockdown...

Conversations cannot come any better than this: one of the many upsides of lockdown has been the volume of exchanges of communications with friends from all over the world - strong of newly found time on everyone’s hands. 

Emails are dotingly being answered, messages and video calls exchanged on a nonstop flow, and all in all never a dull moment!

Two conversations, in particular, hit close to home. Quantum physics has been the basis of the life of an Italian friend who expressed his concern about the current progress of the pandemic. His greater awareness of all matters brought him to express to me his concern that negative vibrations have taken force around the global pandemic, and how urgent it is that a vaccine will be perfected, to avoid the possible mutation of the virus, with all the implications that such disastrous possible development could deploy. 

A second email, received from far away from Hawaii, arrived almost at the same time. This time from two friends based there at this time of the year and facing lockdown in paradise. The amazing surroundings are not stopping them to further their philanthropic devotion, and they are funding a study made in Boston, centred around the possible modification to an existing vaccine that has been used to great success to fight tuberculosis.

Sitting pretty at home, with the content of the two emails, I felt the sense of urgency and compelled to understand whether I could take some action to this matter, and I replied to the scientist first, asking how we can offset the negative force at work alongside the pandemic. His reply comes promptly: we need to send heartfelt prayers to the four corners of the globe, to bring light to all who need it. And the more we are, the better it is. 

That is how @focus_together has come to life: a new Instagram and Facebook page we launched the very same day, to create awareness and to urge as many followers we garnered from the beginning, to send a ray of light to the four corners of the globe. 

The way the infection is multiplying is at the basis of the project, and if each one of us passes the message to at least ten friends, and they do the same and ask the ten friends to do share the page on a non-stop cycle, we should in no time grow a global network of like-minded followers. And unlike the virus we are determined to defeat and see the curve of infection diminish, here we want the wave of light and heartfelt positive energy to reverberate and continue to grow till when the pandemic will be coming to its end - we pray sooner rather than later. 

Follow @focus_together and share the page to at least ten likeminded friends - now like ever - the more the merrier. 

Thank you from the deep of our hearts, and not a minute to lose.

As my mother loves to repeat: “who could have ever imagined....” and yet Bill Gates had foretold a few years ago about a pandemic that would hit the planet.

Here we all are, for the first time in history, learning to come to terms with how to cope with a tiny tiny virus that hit hard the big big world. All of a sudden we are all adjusting to new ways of living as Governments are striving to find the best solution to each problem as it evolves... it is a situation that found us all unprepared, and so many are the implications and consequences that we’ll all pay for years to come.

Many parts of the globe are enduring isolation as at present the only way to keep safe, as brave ones try to save lives, as the studious scientists are looking for a vaccine. Politicians and world leaders are all scratching their heads trying to keep their country safe, hopefully with an open-minded outlook.

Lockdown and isolation seem to be the most popular way to keep as many of us safe: cabin fever apart, many the implications that come to play when the world is told they cannot go out.... curfews are usually imposed during a war, and brave partisans can climb on rooftops and shoot the enemies... in this war, the enemies are the ones that resent the recommended directions set in place to save the most vulnerable, and far too many who do not want to comply have varied excuses for moving around, but one reason: they cannot cope with their feeling of losing their freedom, to such an extreme that they omit looking at the real possibility of death.

Many miss the main point of what we are fighting for at the moment, that is our life and of our dear ones. 

Freedom stands for something greater than just the right to act however one chooses—it also stands for securing to everyone an equal opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. To most reasonable people, freedom means more than just 'free to do whatever I want'.

We are fortunate to be in an era when we can nurture the many aspects of daily life that would be not at our fingertips a few decades ago, and as the weeks of isolation and lockdown are possibly going to become months, let’s stop for a moment and instead of rebelling, putting at risk so much, let’s look around and find positive and mindful ways to bring new depth to our lives, and even more so, to the lives of the one who can benefit from great or small new ideas. Call a long lost friend, look into a passion you had put away unfulfilled, come up with a new idea that might bring a smile to a loved one. 

This is an unprecedented experience. Let’s all focus, stay safe and come out the other side with new vigour and passion for the freedom that eventually we’ll have back once we all will have done our part to make this moment mindful.