Whirlwind week!

What a whirlwind week!!!

Waiting in anxious anticipation for the election results. I got so overwhelmed by the roller-coaster of constantly reading the news and listening to NPR, I couldn't get any work done, and finally had to cut myself off somewhat. Kindly, Simon was my filter. He kept racing in to me, bright-eyed, bouncing with a huge smile - 'Mom, we got Arizona!', 'Mom, we got Michigan!', 'MOMMMMM, we got Pennsylvania!!!'

All against the ominous backdrop of Hurricane Eta. We had three days of non-stop rain in Gamboa. Nowhere near the dire conditions west and north of us. The landslides and devastation in western Panama was awful - and the conditions in Honduras, Nicaragua and Guatemala were much worse. All the while Trump denying climate change.

And if all this didn't seem apocalyptic enough, the covid numbers worldwide keep surging to ever more alarming heights.

But finally - four tumultuous days later - the election was called. What an immense relief!! My expectations during these days had dropped so much. My initial shock and disappointment at the lack of a landslide blue wave was replaced by massive relief that at least the presidency was secure.  

Looking at this beautifully diverse group. Wanting more than anything to believe that they really can heal the country and bring our polarized tribes together. By the end, we were all full of tentative joyful hope, and emotionally wiped out.