Florida Opening

First, don’t believe everything you see on the news or read about Florida’s response to Coronavirus.  The residents were not the ones congregating on the beaches during spring break.  We were already sheltering in place, because we were concerned about our neighbors, many who are elderly and at risk.  We patiently waited for the influx of visitors to lessen and have been following the rules since then.  Our governor has taken a one size does not fit all approach and is treating the hot spots and vulnerable populations differently than the areas less affected and continues to give power to local governments.

My county (Sarasota), never a hot spot, has opened our beaches for walking, but kept the parking lots closed for now.  This gives locals the opportunity to get back on our beaches, with proper social distancing.  On Monday, Florida begins “Phase One” where restaurants are opening with capacity limits and those of us who are healthy, are free to go out and about with guidelines on masks, group size and continued social distancing when possible.

The Governor  talked about hope and seeing a light at the end of the tunnel today at his news conference.  And, not giving in to fear.  Going for a walk on the beach today, with very few people around, gave me that sense of the hope he was talking about.  Just a little bit of normalcy, with common sense, was just what I needed and something I hope you all can experience soon too.