As part of the journey of hope that began with the 2025 Jubilee, our appointments with Mario Antonio Clerici continue. He is a devoted reader of ours and a volunteer with the Italian Red Cross.
In this third article, the Author recounts the Covid 19 pandemic from his memories as a volunteer and reflects on the mystery of life and death, which transcends us but allows us to draw closer to one another.
The pandemic experienced as a volunteer
Five years after the first case of Covid 19 was diagnosed in Italy, little or nothing is said about the pandemic. On the one hand, this is surprising because the World Health Organization declared the end of the emergency only on May 5, 2023. On the other hand, the suffering endured during the long coronavirus era, with its tragic toll of deaths and suffering, makes it understandable that people would try to distance such dark memories from everyday life, which is already burdened with more than enough worries.
Those who truly cannot consign the weeks, months, and years of the pandemic to oblivion, especially the first, extremely difficult wave, are the emergency volunteers, the link between the outbreak of contagion and the hope of recovery. For the writer, a Red Cross volunteer in Lurate Caccivio, in the province of Como, remembering those moments also means reflecting on something that goes beyond the pandemic emergency itself.
Emergency response: on the ridge between life and death
Indeed, during that period in recent history, the connection between those who provide help and the extremely fragile ridge of existence between life and death was felt in a special way. At least, that is how it was for me. I perceived the sacredness of human life in its fragility, in the patient’s disarming reliance on rescuers. Despite having many years of experience with the Red Cross behind me, the “immersive” experience of the pandemic led me to confront the mystery of life and death even more radically.
That something strange was in the air had already been sensed in November 2019. We were frequently called to assist people experiencing respiratory distress; we noticed some unusual situations, patients who suddenly suffered attacks and shortness of breath and were unable to breathe, without having any diagnosed condition. Even we rescuers could not explain what was happening. Then, in January 2020, China told the world that it was facing a health emergency originating in the city of Wuhan. A month later, the contagion had reached Italy, and the WHO’s declaration of the Covid-19 pandemic left the world gasping for breath.
Of those frantic weeks, when we were constantly going out to provide assistance, what remains before my eyes are the long queues at the various hospitals to take patients with coronavirus symptoms to the emergency department. Who among us was ready for that (new) challenge? No one, I believe. Beyond the unknown virus, we did not expect to have to face so much despair.
There were many deaths during that period: Lombardy was one of the epicenters of the emergency, and Bergamo the province with the most victims. It was a very difficult time for emergency responders; confronting the illness and the fear of being infected put us under great strain. Even speaking with patients’ relatives was difficult, because the anxiety and fear of not seeing their loved one again were immense. We tried to offer a little confidence and courage, but it was difficult to bring hope, because everyone knew how serious the virus’s complications could be, while effective treatments were being sought with desperate urgency.
Setting aside the I, to assist a You
Never, as during the pandemic, did providing emergency assistance also mean confronting death. Emergency response work is, by its nature, a safeguard for health. No one is ever indifferent to death, nor prepared to face it. Whether the call comes for a possible cardiac arrest, a road accident, or an illness, when we intervene, we always try to achieve a positive outcome. Covid-19 confronted us with total uncertainty, especially at the beginning. Every time we went out, we felt the worry of facing contagion personally. We took on that risk head-on, setting aside the I, the We, in order to assist a You, our fellow human being who was most in need, unarmed, alone. The protective suits, the masks, everything made us even more distant from the patient, but no protective measure ever shielded the humanity of the volunteers who devoted themselves to ensuring oxygen or hospital admission for patients who were “hungry” for air.
Standing on the ridge
As mentioned at the beginning, the Covid period made me reflect on life. It made me aware of the transcendent dimension of existence: a breath brings us into existence, but just as little is enough for it to be extinguished.
Fortunately, being on the “ridge” also means looking out onto the beauty of the human condition, onto its coming into the light. If there is one rescue call that truly fills you with energy, it is when a child is eager to be born and, perhaps, the ambulance has to pull over because the mother is about to give birth.
I remember one night when I was on duty: my colleagues and I transported a pregnant woman to the hospital. How joyful we were when the baby was born, just after we arrived at the Emergency Department! We all felt part of the new parents’ boundless happiness; but we had not even finished celebrating with a cup of hot chocolate when the operations center redirected us to the home of an elderly woman in serious condition. She was no longer breathing. The doctor performed resuscitation maneuvers. In vain. Her overall condition was too compromised, and the medical staff could only confirm her death.
That night we experienced two completely opposite situations: the emotion of new life and the sadness of a death. Although it is almost never the case that one experiences this “bipolar” range of emotions, I find myself thinking that the two moments are nothing less than an emblem of the human condition, and experiencing them as a volunteer rescuer is a great gift, because in both cases we realize that we have no say in the matter. In a birth, life bursts forth. In death, it leaves us, even when every possible effort is made.
This means that there is Someone who transcends us and, yes, entrusts us to others so that we may be there for our neighbor. During the most difficult period of Covid, this was my compass for staying oriented toward humanity, even when everything seemed to be moving in the opposite direction.
Mario Antonio Clerici shared with us his memories of the pandemic, experienced as a Red Cross volunteer, and his reflections on life and death, marked by hope and faith; if you would like, we would also love to hear your testimony and reflections!
