Well, Panama is not immune to the virus that has spread around the world.  The good news is that the government has been proactive in dealing with it.  Effective at 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, March 22, Panama will suspend all commercial flights into and out of Panama.   So if you have travel plans to visit Panama, you need to delay them for awhile.

All public entertainment areas and stores in the entire country must close, which includes, restaurants, bars, clubs, casinos, and children’s parks, as well as beaches.  Food delivery services, grocery stores, and pharmacies will continue to operate with social distancing and capacity limits.

Here in Boquete, most bars are closing and restaurants are on a take out or delivery mode only.  The mayors of Chiriqui province including Boquete have implemented a curfew of 9 PM to 5 AM.  Like the rest of Panama, Church services, fairs, events for more than 50 people have been suspended.  Grocery stores limit the number or shoppers who can occupy  at one time but otherwise, we have not seen any shortages of goods or food supplies.  One good thing about Boquete is our agriculture business and we can always count on protein and veggies being readily available not to mention all the cheese makers and bread bakers!!

I must say that I was just about to take off for the beach for awhile but all beaches are now closed too!  While all of this has been stopped for 14 days, I do think we will see more drastic measures implemented rather than go back business as normal.  It is time to get used to the New Normal for awhile.

On a lighter side, I wanted to share a story that I read that is on point with one thing that we can all do right now.

I just read an article by one of my favorite writers Lori Borgman titled To Do or To Be, that is the question.  Here she talks about dumping your to do lists and create one instead that is a “To Be” list.  Here are some excerpts;

At the top of my To Be? A better listener, a person who doesn’t just hear, and is quick with solutions, but one who truly listens with understanding.

Recently, I was digging through my purse for a pen when a woman stopped me to say something very kind. I made eye contact, but it wasn’t until she finished that I realized I kept digging for a pen the entire time she spoke. What’s the matter with me? Please don’t answer and, if you do, hold it to 10,000 words or less.

To Be? A person who knows that time is not a commodity, but a gift—a gift given to us and a gift we give others.

To Be? Generous. To freely share all that I have. No strings attached, no thank you expected, simply to give because giving is good.

To Be? Attentive. I know the clerks and cashiers and the produce people at the grocery where I shop by their faces, smiles and voices, but not their names. I see many of them weekly. Common courtesy says I ought to pay attention to their names.
At the end of the day, I nearly always wish I had been more in the moment.

Things on a To Be list won’t be checked off as quickly as those on a To Do list. By the time I get through some of those To Be items, the glue on the back of the sticky notes will be dried and worthless. But slow progress is better than none.

By the way, John is the name of the man who stocks produce in the early mornings.

One To Be down and a thousand more to go.  The end!

Let us all pray that we get back to normal sooner rather than later and in the meantime, hold those close to you and be sensitive to others feelings.  Not everyone is thinking what you are at the moment and many will be dealing with this worse than others.

God bless!!