Wow. Such a long time. Yet some changes are starting to take place.

Here the virus still has large numbers of victims both getting ill and dying. The city is still in the grips of the first round of losses, while in other countries they are experiencing the rebound of infections.

What was once Argentina’s strength in closing it’s international borders, may now be seen as wise but yet troubling as the infection rate is now very high in the province of Buenos Aires. The city of Buenos Aires is in somewhat better shape.

Rumor has it the country will open it’s borders to international traffic in mid October …maybe it will and maybe it will not. Many Argentineans living abroad want to return home in December to spend time with their families for the holidays. The added bonus while in North America, winter arrives. Here it will be summer. The weather will be warm and summery. I am looking forward to seeing the Jacaranda trees blooming in November. Their purple flowers all over this town…have seen photos but excited to see in person.

This country desperately needs the added revenues that tourism brings. Walking on any avenue, we see stores that are permanently shuttered. And at the same time, new stores are replacing older ones. Am sure this scene is being replayed on many mainstreets around the world.

But now in BuenosAires, we can get a haircut, get a manicure and shop as all stores are open. My favorite is cafes and restaurants are now able to offer both indoor and outdoor seating. This is a sign of somewhat normalcy, and hopefully the museums, and movie theaters will open soon. Yet meanwhile malls and sports stadiums are shuttered. We we ever be normal again? What is our new normal?

The larger question is howare we doing at coping with isolation? Without touch and without intimacy?

And then the question arises, what are the consequences of these times on different generations…have heard stories of grandparents not being able to hug their loved ones.

As some of you might know, I am a fairly expessive person when I talk, thinking back to last February, always using my hands to make or acknowledgement a point…now have learned to talk without my hands, not sure if this is a good skill or not…the present and only the present.

But then again a dear friend, mentioned there are more psychologists here in BsAs than anywhere else in the world. Maybe this is why the people of Argentina are so resilient in their demeanor, they expect everything to go downhill, not succeeding long term…but these folks are very good living in the moment. Maybe, that’s why this culture has such an unusual sense of time, as if it didn’t matter.

Perhaps that’s what the lesson of this pandemic is, time is not important. A life well lived and well loved is important…maybe isn’t all that consumable and consumed stuff, but maybe it that gentle human touch reminding us that we are human.

Ciao