Greetings from Prague once again, my fellow greater Nashuans, coming to you with a different look, and maybe a more serious tone than most are used to from me. Funny is fun, but we’re all going through a fairly serious crisis together, so serious might be the better order of the day.

Though I wrote that we’re going through a serious crisis “together,” that’s not quite true, as I am here and you are there, and I think we are going through this crisis in far different ways.

I will forego most of the details for now and simply state that very active measure began here on January 28th and, incrementally, by the third week of March all non-essential businesses and operations serving the public directly were shut down; no more than two people were allowed to gather at a time; masks were required for everyone over two years old when outside the home; and movement was restricted to jobs, food and medicine shopping, visits to family, outdoor activities in parks and nature, and walking your dog.

Oddly enough, life has gone on. Almost without complaint. Grumblings, to be sure, but no overt protests, and fines for violations that amount to the equivalent of $1,000 per infraction do the job of curtailing holdouts (as do nasty looks one gets if a mask is not worn).

In talking about this with Czech friends, of all ages, one theme keeps rising to the top, and that is one of a difference in socialization.

Though Czechoslovakia was among the wealthiest of European nations between the two world wars, it was subjugated by the Nazis during the second one, and then by the U.S.S.R. soon following, for another 40 years, 21 of them under the gun, ending in 1989.

About half the population here has vivid memories of that period, and what these wonderful people lived with during the era they refer to as “communist times” was one of privation, standing in long lines for sub-standard food and clothing, and following the rules.

These generations are now parents, grandparents and great-grandparents of younger generations, with commensurate power of experience and authority (over teenagers perhaps excepted – even Czechs have difficulty getting teens to mind).

So Czechs generally follow the rules and suffer privation with little complaint, and the elders have impressed upon the youngers that, in this time, it is the best course of action. Ask a Czech today how she or he is doing and the answer is almost always “Dobrý” (good, okay, fine, depending on tone of voice).

From where I stand, this is not a bad deal, especially since I have yet to go into a store and not get whatever I needed, including toilet paper, sanitizer and food staples. The country was prepared for that, too, and no hoarding was allowed. (We folks of a certain age also got special shopping hours.)

But also from where I stand, I spend more time than I wish I felt the need to worrying about my family and friends and business associates on your side of the Atlantic, because you are, in many cases, handling this crisis differently, and slower, than it’s being handled here. Your infection and mortality rates are 5 times that of Czechia, and rising, while ours fall and the farmers markets re-opened a week ago, albeit carefully.

Big ups to those of you who are taking the extra precautions, to Governor Sununu for doing more than many other governors of his party are to keep his state on track, to Mayor Donchess and other local leaders for their efforts to keep the state’s second-most populous demography safe, and to folks like Paul Shea at Great American Downtown for spreading the word about masks.

I leave you with a little levity about the look.., April Fool’s Day is my favorite holiday, and I always try to do some special prank that day (some may remember “lead” balloons from Air Expressions in the early 80s). I went a little over the top this year, and, given my business, most folks were convinced that it was PhotoShop. Nope. Gillette. And the mask? Simply the arm of a t-shirt, which is effective enough (pit side in back).

Please don’t be foolish now that we’re past April. Stay smart. Stay safe. And stay healthy. I am hoping to see all of you when I finally get home.

For those interested in details, a very comprehensive accounting of the measures taken in the Czech Republic to combat the coronavirus pandemic is available and consistently updated on Wikipedia (which often does have it right):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2020_coronavirus_pandemic_in_the_Czech_Republic

Casey Holt is an advertising creative and owner of Ideabenders, with offices in Nashua and Prague. He has lived in Nashua since 1969.

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