We slip into a new normal so quickly
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THE ODD thing – though there are many odd things about the world we now find ourselves in – is not the changes that have taken place but how rapidly everyone adapts to the new way of doing things. What would have been considered very abnormal becomes – overnight – the new normal. Last week (only last week!) I was at a concert at the Royal Albert Hall though the friends I was going with decided against it as neither of them is in the best of health. Now it is closed until further notice.
A month ago we were discussing air travel in terms of the damage it does to the environment. For the past 70 years or more getting on a plane has been hardly more eventful than catching a bus. The world was our oyster. Now you’ll be lucky to get a flight anywhere and anyway the Government has told us not to go abroad for a month.
The sight of empty shelves is no longer unusual. Huge sporting events and festivals have been cancelled. Glastonbury, Euro 2020, the Eurovision Song Contest: gone. Theatres, cinemas, pubs and restaurants closed. Schools shut. Churches closed.
Just like that.
Businesses that were thriving a few short weeks ago find themselves on the brink of going under. Nothing is guaranteed any longer.
Things that were unthinkable are suddenly...thinkable. Brexit, which has occupied our thoughts for years and divided the country bitterly now seems an irrelevance, about as meaningful to our present circumstances as thewars of the Roses.
Empty cities and abandoned businesses look like the end of disaster movies where the world realises it has to pull together to survive
– usually following a televised homily from the President of the United States. (Though I think we can do without that, thanks.)
This crisis also makes you understand how quickly a society can change out of all recognition, something both alarming and comforting. Alarming in that you appreciate how, for instance, Germany in the 1930s transformed from a civilised nation to a fascist one. But comforting in that for all the grumbles and tussles over loo rolls we humans are endlessly adaptable.
Even though we haven’t yet reached the peak of this pandemic many are already wondering whether this will permanently alter the way we do things – alter the way we work and halt the trend towards globalisation which has undoubtedly contributed to this mess.
Perhaps, just perhaps, it could be a catalyst for change that benefits us all. Nice thought but I’m not convinced. My bet is that just as we adapt so quickly to an emergency we will switch back with equal alacrity – and much relief – to our old way. We bounce back.
In a few years could we be thinking, “Coronavirus – what was all that about?” I very much hope so.
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MY CHILDREN ring me constantly to check that I’m following safety procedures. Terrible nags all of them. Exasperated by their bossiness, I asked my younger son if he remembered telling me (when he was about 13) that he never washed his hands in order to build up his immunity. What did he think of that now? There was an echoing silence down the phone. Against government advice I licked my index finger and made a “strike one” gesture.