I don’t think we get back to normal. I think we get to a new normal.” – Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York

For many years, I’ve walked along the Wailea beach walk in the mornings. Normally, when I do, there are numerous people also walking along the pathway, some taking scuba instruction at Ulua Beach, others practicing yoga on the expanses of open lawn, while hotel guests are either enjoying being in the swimming pools, or reading books on their chaise lounges lined up on Wailea Beach. Mothers are applying sunscreen all over their children’s bodies, dads are lugging coolers down to the beach, and joggers are running by the many strolling couples who sip their coffee while conversing. As I stated, that would be an accurate description of my morning beach walk on a “normal” day. Today, it looked nothing like that.

In the midst of the current coronavirus pandemic, the residents here on Maui are faced with the same “shelter-in-place” restrictions that are being implemented throughout most of the world right now. With a few exceptions, we are being told to pretty much stay home. Although the beaches are now closed to the public, walking and jogging is still allowed as long as everyone keeps a distance of six feet between each other. So, today, it is a very strange sight to see the beaches completely devoid of human presence, and only a few people, like myself, walking along the beach walk. There are now fences along the perimeters of each of the hotel properties, and all of their outdoor lounge chairs, tables, and umbrellas have been removed. The swimming pools are now devoid of any water. Also absent are the alluring aromas of breakfast being prepared, which normally flow down from the open-air dining rooms of the different hotels as I walk by.

Assuming that these “shelter-in-place” and “social distancing” restrictions remain in effect for several more weeks – if not months – one has to wonder what life will be like when we all eventually come out of our proverbial tornado shelters to view what’s left of our world out there, and attempt to reconnect with our fellow human beings. Personally, I’m far less concerned with what the state of the world will be like as I am with how we will do with this reconnecting thing. I suspect that whatever common fears we will have – centered around economic uncertainty, instability, and calamity – will pale in comparison to the far greater fear we will share of ever getting close to (yet alone touching) each other again.

With all of the current precautionary measures of social distancing, hand sanitizing, wearing protective masks and gloves in public, I can’t help but wonder how challenging it may be for us to return to the days of giving someone a handshake, a hug, or a kiss on the cheek? Will the “new normal” be an all-out eschewal of those friendly greeting practices of old? What ultimate price will we pay, on a human level, when embracing one another no longer comes to us “naturally” anymore? What happens when we come to fear the friendly, or loving, touch of another human being? Who are we then? And what will we have lost of our humanity?

I would hope and pray that none of us would ever want to live in that type of new world. Since the dawn of smartphones, we have witnessed, firsthand, a steady decline in the desire to engage in direct, one-to-one communication between individuals, co-workers, and family members. The very last thing we need in this world, right now, is another reason/excuse to further disassociate with one another. Try to imagine a world where we will not only desire to forego direct verbal communication with one another (which we’re already doing), but now we will also be fearful of physically getting too close to other individuals. Now, try to imagine that this world I have just illustrated is not a nightmare you will awaken from – but the “new normal” that will be this planet’s future. That should scare the hell out of anyone!

Having grown up in an era when racial segregation in America was a very real thing, as was the international fear of nuclear Armageddon, I know what happens to people, and whole nations, when they feel cut off from each other, while, simultaneously, the constant threat of total annihilation hovers over their lives. Fear feeds fear. Segregation was all about fear of others (solely because they had a different skin color). And that fear was of fellow Americans! Now, compound that societal racial fear, together with a common national fear of other countries and their nuclear capabilities, and you have a world not so very different than the one we have today. The only difference is that, instead of being fearful of people of different races, now we’re color-blind and fearful of everyone. Instead of worrying about the world coming to an end in a nuclear war, now we’re afraid of a deadly global pandemic taking us all out. Fear is fear.

Now, just imagine that, six months from now, this whole coronavirus threat is behind us. Let’s say that we still share the same global concerns, and economic uncertainty, we have today – but minus the fear. I wholeheartedly believe that we have it within ourselves to transform from a place of being fearful of having personal contact with others, to a new place where we use the lessons learned during this global pandemic to demonstrate a mutual respect for everyone’s well-being. Maybe we find a way to convert our current predisposition to panic during crises (by hoarding toilet paper, for example), by caring for, and serving, others who have a greater need than we do. In other words, maybe we can come out of this coronavirus thing as better people.

Maybe, just maybe, this “new normal” can be reflective of a future global community coming together, as opposed to one that wishes to maintain distance from one another. Maybe we can learn from this experience that acceptance is everything when it comes to dealing with natural disasters, whether caused by extreme weather or pandemic viruses. How we choose to act, during stressful times, will often define how fearful we are as individuals. How we continue to act, after the storm has passed, more often speaks to how much compassion we have for our fellow human beings. For the sake of our shared humanity, if we do experience a “new normal” after this global pandemic, may it abound with love and compassion.

I, for one, will embrace that New World with open arms!