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Coronavirus good deeds: Kindness acts and heartwarming scenes

Cooped-up Italians are proving why the world loves them so much – singing and playing music from their balconies.

Cooped-up Italians are proving why the world loves them so much – singing and playing music from their balconies. Photo: Getty

It’s easy to get swept up in the panic and fear being fuelled by the coronavirus outbreak, but there’s a wave of good deeds and positivity that’s keeping the sickness at bay.

In Italy, one of the key affected countries, people are singing from their balconies to lift the spirits of those around them.

Of course not everyone has a great singing voice.

So musical instruments have been whipped out to form a backing track.

It’s not dissimilar to Wuhan, back in the early days of the coronavirus outbreak, when the locked-down occupants sung and danced to each other via videos on the internet.

Alongside uplifting actions are tales of downright human compassion.

Gone are the stories of shoppers brawling over diminishing groceries in supermarkets. Instead they’re being replaced with acts of kindness.

People with surplus goods are actively seeking out those who haven’t been so fortunate, seeking to share their stock so others won’t go without.

In one Melbourne neighbourhood, residents have begun waking to gifts left on their doorsteps.

Alice Mitchell, whose work has ordered her to stay home, has begun trying to keep the strength of community spirit alive.

As she and her family were staring down the barrel of potential self-isolation, Ms Mitchell was turning away from the anxiety-inducing media saturation and towards more traditional forms of entertainment.

“I noticed I was gravitating toward board games and the like, to keep my mind occupied from the media overexposure,” Ms Mitchell told The New Daily.

“I figured most others could benefit from a similar thing.

“So I bought a bunch of puzzles which were inexpensive but might mean the difference between sanity or not.”

Together with her two sons, they’ve begun leaving puzzles on their neighbours’ doorsteps at night – with a little note about “keeping sane during lockdown”.

“When the climate seems to be every man for himself out in public, I just wanted to give a gesture to my immediate neighbourhood so that they know we’ve got their backs if they need it,” Ms Mitchell said.

The reaction has been heartwarming.

Neighbours have come a-knocking to chat and say thanks, with a renewed sense of optimism.

Zephyr, 3, proudly holds up the thank you note a neighbour left on their porch.

On Wednesday morning, they woke to their own porch surprise: a thank you note, some chocolate and a “cheeky” roll of toilet paper.

“Hopefully they’ll think to pass things down the line to help strengthen our communities – because we need each other more than ever now,” she said.

“That human-to-human interaction builds each other up.”

Have you seen a kind act during the coronavirus outbreak? Tell us in the comments below. Even better – do one yourself

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