Corona Virus in the Dominican Republic
· We are in a State of Emergency
· 172 cases in a country of about 11 million (taken from a FB group)
· Activities are suspended for the next 25 days
· Curfew strictly imposed from 8PM-6AM
· Schools are closed
· Gyms are closed
· Places that are open: supermarket, small grocery stores, fuel stations, pharmacies and commercial establishments dedicated to the sale of raw or cooked food
· Restaurants are closed, but you can call for takeout or delivery
· Most small corner stores are open
· Banks are open
· Airport have closed the boarders, you can’t fly in unless you are a resident
· Foreigners can fly home, but flights are scare and some are being cancelled
· People are posting in groups they can’t find flights out
For the most part, it is quiet in the mountains of Jarabacoa. A siren will sound at 8PM to go home and stay there. I rarely go out at night after dark anyway because the rate of a drunk driver hitting you skyrockets. My car is still a mess from a motorcycle plowing through an intersection a few weeks ago. I hear police are stopping work vehicles during the day telling them they aren’t to be working. I have heard that the police are sweeping the streets and arresting people that are out after 8PM, if you aren’t medical personnel. The curfew just started last night, I think.
The supermarket is not out of items, people are not stocking up obsessively. My family went grocery shopping, but honestly, having a large property with food growing rapidly, food isn’t a concern for me.
About 10 missionaries have left; some with health concerns, family sick in USA, and others wanting to leave before they are stuck here. Leaving is never an option for me, so it never crosses my mind. We all must pray and be confident in what He asks. Many times in the Bible people are asked to do things that everyone around them would say DON’T DO, but God commands them to do it. Just listen to the Holy Spirit and you will be confident. Be an Abraham.
School is closed and the girls are doing homeschooling. The country does not recognize home-schooling outside of this pandemic. Daniela is doing it all online and Jess has packets to accomplish. We are doing fine. Math might kill Jess and I both.
On another note, I love being a stay-at-home mom. I’ve been working from home for months now on FIGHT things. I help with construction when Luke asks and facilitate teams when they are here. Everything is shut down, so it’s a very SLOW PACE right now. It is so relaxing to do laundry and clean without running around to accomplish other things. I am loving finding new recipes and cooking YUMMY lunches and dinners for my kids. Sometimes when you are so busy, you throw whatever on the table. Lunches are fast like sandwiches and you don’t really care, but when you have time, it all changes! I’m loving making things from scratch. Daniela is vegan. She quit meat first, but then she’s been throwing up for 2 weeks, so we cut dairy, too. We have all her tests back, but her Endo isn’t seeing patients. She thought lactose intolerance and stomach ulcers. She sadly said that all the gastro issues Dani has is reflective of growing up poor, “in the barrio.” She said corner store (colmado) eating is killing the populations' digestive tracks. She said, “Never eat SALAMI.” I said, “STOP! Let me record this!” Everyone eats that in the DR. She is Dominican and I’ve never heard that before. We don’t eat it because it is poorly refrigerated. She said all the meats at the colmado are infested with bacteria and parasites--most diseases are colmado related. Anyway, Daniela’s loving things like dairy free pesto sauce, vegan hotdogs, black bean burgers, vegetable fritters, veggie burritos, and more!
What else is going on? It’s been raining, too. I LOVE THE RAIN. I know a lot of people become depressed…that’s not me. I find such joy and peace in the rain. It feels so spiritual to me, honestly. I always think of it as God kissing me with each drop. I never hesitate to walk in the rain. I had been in a line to leave church last week, then realized it wasn’t a line to leave! They were all waiting. I don’t know if Dominicans are scare of getting sick, getting wet, or ruining their hair. Someone yelled to me…”NOOOOO, don’t go! Your hair!!” My kids used to cower at the rain before, they could careless now after learning from me. Be thankful for the rain! <3
Anyway, life is good. No complaints here. I don’t usually suffer from anxiety, so I haven’t had any anxious thoughts. I will abide by the statutes the government put into place. We haven’t left home in 2 days, only to go for a walk with friends yesterday. I have taken requests to God on the daily asking God to keep Corona out of my house. What He chooses to permit is fine with me.
Use this time to pray, fast, seek, and read. Don’t complain about having time to RELAX. Take out a book and read! Cook some good, healthy thought out meals and let the kids help. Put huge time limits on kid movies and they will read more books!
Thank God for what you have been given and repent of the anxiety that says He isn’t in control—because HE IS.
Death had a stronghold, but Your life was stronger
Rose from the grave, rose up from the grave, yeah
When evil is rising, You're rising higher
With power to save, with power to save,
There's hope in the morning
There's hope in the evening
There's hope because You're living
There's hope because You're breathing
There's hope in the breaking
There's hope in the sorrow
Hope for this moment
My hope for tomorrow
If you are Christian, I encourage you to go through Exodus this week. Can you imagine seeing all water turned to blood? And, I encourage you to be different than the world and not panic with anxiety and fear. Be a light.
