The past couple of months have been tough.

Health concerns, loss of income, and not being able to socialize has been extremely frustrating.

We are social creatures after all and it is in our nature to want to spend time with one another.

I personally live with four other roommates, so getting my fill of social connection hasn’t been too hard.

But I know many people who live alone and haven’t interacted with anyone in quite a while–and it’s starting to take its toll.

Even with four people in my house, I’m still itching for some social interaction with others.

Luckily, restrictions around COVID-19 are starting to lighten up.

Although many stores and restaurants are still closed, we are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel for this whole quarantine business.

But things are still far from normal.

Even if stores are open, you’re still required to wear a mask and keep the recommended six-foot distance from everyone else.

So when one restaurant in Thailand opened its doors for the first time in months, they had some obstacles to overcome.

Maison Saigon, a Vietnamese restaurant in Bangkok, originally planned on having only one chair at each table to promote social distancing according to Insider.

But that just wasn’t cutting it.

When the owner, Natthwut Rodchanapanthkul, saw what the restaurant looked like with only one chair per table, he wasn’t satisfied.

He told reports at Reuters, “Earlier we had only one chair for the tables where the customer came alone. But for me, it felt strange, so I thought I’d give them some company.”

But how do you give someone company at a table when you aren’t supposed to be anywhere near each other?

By bringing in big stuffed pandas of course!

The owner placed stuffed panda bears in various chairs around the restaurant to give it a more cheery and inviting vibe.

It also helped reinforce the social distancing rule according to Bored Panda.

And it worked great.

One customer told Reuters, “The doll makes me feel less lonely eating by myself.”

Another customer explained that the stuffed animals not only improved the vibe of the place, but it made seating arrangements more clear as well.

He told reporters, “It’s a lot easier to understand compared to other restaurants where people always get confused about where to sit and end up sitting too close to each other.”

Now is the time when we need to get creative about the way that we do things.

Sure the owner of Maison Saigon could have just put up a bunch of signs that told people where they could and could not sit.

But how lame would that have been?

Nothing makes tough times harder than boring rules and stiff regulations.

It takes a little fun to shake things up!

And having a meal next to a giant, cuddly, cute stuffed panda sure does lighten the mood a bit.

So if you happen to be stuck at home by yourself right now, maybe give this stuffed animal trick a try.

Put a few on your couch, a couple at the dinner table, and maybe even one out on the deck.

Whatever it takes to get through this isolation period with a little bit of sanity is worth it.

And don’t be too surprised if you find that one small panda goes a long way.

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By B.T. Swezey

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B.T. Swezey is a contributor at SBLY Media.