We’ve been so happy to hear from many of you and are so glad that you’re healthy and faring well under the circumstances. 
 
It’s been about two weeks since our return from Mexico. We went from socializing and partying to social distancing and disinfecting. Quite a change. (We brought back Mexican alcohol -- a little mezcal and a lot of rubbing alcohol.) 
 
After spending fourteen years roaming the world and returning every year to our favorite places on this beautiful planet, we find ourselves holed up in Silicon Valley, California, barely going even to the store. 
 
Not being able to travel makes me feel trapped. But it's the price we've got to pay to help the nation cope with a lack of medical staff, tests, resources and a vaccine. 
 
It’s normal to feel sad and worried as we witness and endure the consequences of this terrible pandemic. The devastation to small businesses, people’s livelihoods, people’s health, the economic downturn and all the deaths are beyond heartbreaking. 
 
Luckily, we’re with our son, daughter-in-law and adorable, enchanting and endlessly entertaining granddaughter, Princess Squishyface, who manages to be cuter and funnier every day.
 
We’re doing our best to enjoy life in a different way. 
 
We’ve been checking in with all our friends around the world. Their locations span the crisis spectrum, from our friends in Northern Italy, which is in the middle of an unmitigated catastrophe, to Mexico, where the real impact is still weeks into the future. We're grateful that everyone we know, personally, is OK. 
 
(Speaking of friends around the world, these photos were sent to us by Erik, a Venetian who drives his boat for us in Venice during The Prosecco Experience. Normally, Venice is a poster child for overtourism; right now, it's deserted, the water is clearing up and the streets and canals are quiet.)
 
We have so much gratitude for all the healthcare workers and governments around the world working diligently to save lives and contain the spread of COVID-19. We’re grateful for everyone involved in growing, distributing and making food, despite the risks. 
 
As we all try to adapt to life with COVID-19, it’s our sincerest hope that you are able to cope with all the sheltering in place and social distancing and any other impacts from this crisis. 
 
The pandemic makes me realize how we have taken our way of life on this planet for granted. It’s a big lesson indeed. 
 
But treading more lightly is long overdue. Embracing a more sustainable way to live on this planet while co-existing with each other is not only a necessity but actually something deeply rewarding.
 
Enjoying the simple things as well as a slow way of life are things our usually hectic and fast-paced world makes us neglect and overlook. Instead, we perform acrobatics with our schedules and make shopping an olympic sport. We find comfort on compulsive consumerism while we forget the very things that make us human and lose some of our humanity alongside.
 
Getting reacquainted with our kitchens and spending more quality time around the table eating, talking, playing and laughing with our loved ones are precious but almost extinct rituals that we have been forced to embrace again.
 
It seems that the less we have the more gratitude cultivates in our hearts. Perhaps this is the only way that this could have happened.
 
And now spring is upon us and there’s promise of lush greens, wild flowers with sunny warmth and the bounties of nature. 
 
This is a great time to plant seeds or seedlings and get a vegetable garden going, or at least some potted herbs if you don’t have the luxury of a yard. I got some seeds last time we were in Oaxaca (less than a month ago!). And I just bought some organic soil so I’m all set to give this a go.
 
Negative events are often an opportunity to do something positive. So we’ve been cooking and baking a lot enjoying candlelight dinners and also practicing our homesteading skills -- and some dance moves! 

Fermentation is something both Mike and I love. I made a ton of sauerkraut recently. Mike has baked sourdough bread every day. I fed and harvested our raw red wine vinegar and apple cider vinegar. Also, my kefir is doing well and happy to be fed on a regular basis for a change. Our son, Kevin, is making kombucha and organic beer so we’re well covered in the fermentation department.

The goal is to find the silver lining to this crisis we’re all confronted by. And when I say "all," I mean every single human being on this planet. It's hard to grasp the significance of that. 
 
As I talk to friends all over the world, I see that they and we are similarly challenged by the same threats and effects of the coronavirus pandemic. 
 
We’re in this together, in the broadest possible sense of the phrase. We are one global community as a human race having to rise the challenges of the most life changing event of our lifetime. 
 
None of us are on different sides. We’re not fighting wars with each other. We're fighting this pandemic as the human race. We’re fighting one common threat to each and everyone of us. 
 
Even as we have to observe social distancing, we’re connected more than ever before. There are no borders, boundaries or divisions between us. Our connection this time goes beyond gender, geography, social economic factors and race as well as cultural and religious differences. 
 
We have to learn, grow, adapt and survive together because it’s literally the only way.
 
This will pass. One day this will be a distant memory, and hopefully, we’ll be practicing the lessons learned. 
 
As we look back, we’ll share a bond of shared sacrifice that made us re-embrace our natural roots as human beings gathering in solidarity and joining our efforts collectively for our own survival. A time that forced us to reflect and live more sustainably for a better and stronger future -- not just as a nation but as a planet and global community.
 
More than ever, we need to support one another and especially those enduring serious hardship, whether they’re our loved ones, friends or other organizations and small businesses. There’s so much need out there for being good neighbors, good relatives, good friends, good citizens, good customers and good human beings. Our acts of generosity and kindness are what will make the difference in someone’s life during this crisis.
 
For now, we can be grateful for the time to enjoy some quiet introspection. Hopefully, we’ll come out on the other end stronger, wiser and kinder. 
 
And we can look forward to the future when we can keep exploring the world across oceans and experience other cultures that inspire us and nourish our souls. 
 
Life is for celebrating and travel is the most fulfilling and meaningful way to celebrate life!

-Amira