When will hope return?

IT all happened very fast. There was no time to prepare the mind for what was coming. We woke up on March 18 with the news of the closed bridge. Suddenly the busiest border in Brazil stopped and a part of our identity was gone.

On that day, the thousands of Brazilians crossing the International Friendship Bridge to Ciudad del Este to work or shop were unable to cross. In addition, many families had to split up. People who live in Foz, but have relatives on the other side of the bridge and now only see themselves through the cell phone screen.

Never before in the history of the world has a hug been so desired. Yeah, people really only value it after they can’t. Now we are feeling it in our skin and it hurts, not only the lack of a hug, but also so many other simple things that we could do before, such as the right to be free, and that today is no longer possible, at least not yet.

Not only did the border stop, but the whole world. And that day the biggest feeling was loss. But not loss of health or life – as is happening with hundreds of thousands of people worldwide – not even the loss of a job, but the loss of a lifestyle so common for those living on the Triple Border. Paraguay closed the bridge, Argentina too.

Thus, the three sister cities found themselves isolated. It is no longer possible to have coffee in Foz do Iguaçu, have lunch in Ciudad del Este and have dinner in Puerto Iguazú. It is no longer possible to shop in Paraguay, cross the bridge and visit the Argentine market. We even miss spending a few hours in the queue to cross the Tancredo Neves Bridge, we are feeling, because after the queue came the enjoyment of the local culinary delights of Puerto Iguazú.

Yeah, the iguaçuense is still trying to get used to this new lifestyle that is based on staying at home. Soon he who carries in his veins the urge to migrate from one place to another, talk on the street with a foreigner, visit a tourist spot in his backyard, live an atypical life that can only be lived by those who have the pleasure of living on a triple frontier.

But today this is not yet possible. Today, what remains is the feeling of uncertainty about the future. When will the bridge open? How will it be when it reopens? What will become of our frontier when the “new normal” appears?

I wish I could have all these answers, especially since I am 100Fronteiras and my legacy has always been to go beyond bridges, uniting and integrating neighboring cities. But at the moment I can’t. The borders are closed, so I can only say that with or without borders my mission of bringing information and integrating the region remains the same, but this time quietly, in the home office, maintaining the safety of the employees who make 100 borders happen and cheering, hoping that the bridges will open, with safety and responsibility for everyone, and that soon we can cross borders and discover the new pleasure of living here.

Until then, we must thank you for your health and your job and look with affection for those millions who are in the opposite situation, wishing with all your heart that everything will be well soon, for everyone. — 100Fronteiras/Brazil