I have a confession to make. I’m not always the best friend. In fact, I take many of my friendships for granted. I have been immature, selfish, and a jerk(ish) over the years. I choose when I want to communicate while simultaneously getting angry when they don’t call me. (Side note: They should’ve never put the “ignore” button on my cell phone.) In urban vernacular, “Where they do that at?” LOL! Then, something happened. The curious term that has rapidly become a fixture in the American lexicon.
Social Distancing.
At first glance, the phrase seems like an oxymoron. How is it possible to be “social” while at the same time being “distant“? I mean, jumbo shrimp has nothing on the complex conundrum created by this twist of words. And yet, here we are. We have been forced by nature and our own arrogance to stay away from each other. A little over 100 years after the influenza pandemic devastated our planet, the coronavirus is climbing up the “deadliest diseases” ranks in a relatively short time.
I’ll see you when I see you…
The social distancing caused by the coronavirus has placed us in a precarious position. For me, it has caused me to remember and lament all the social situations I avoided for the silliest (pun intended) reasons. How many dinners and parties did I pass on because “I was tired” or “I didn’t feel like making the drive”? How many times did I lie when I said, “Let’s get together soon,” when I knew I wasn’t going to take the steps necessary to actually “get together”? All the missed moments and missed memories came flooding back. Social distancing broke the levy and I almost drowned from the guilt.
Time to Get Academic
What I and many others experienced as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent social distancing can be described as existential angst. Existential angst is defined as “a sense of disorientation, confusion, or dread in the face of a meaningless or absurd world.” In layman’s terms, we have suddenly and simultaneously been forced to face our own mortality in a semi- if not totally – isolated state. The anxiety comes from feeling a loss of control and the fragility of life. For example, all the future plans I was making and not keeping became much more important because my (and their) futures became in jeopardy.
Zoom Into Club Quarantine, Facebook Live, and Facetime
An obscure line from the original Jurassic Park movie always stood out to me. It has become more relevant during this time. The line was simple. It said, “Life will find a way.” I know you may be waiting for the earth-shattering explosion or cleverly crafted and timed mic drop, but that’s not what’s happening here. What is happening is life finding a way to thrive in the face of uncertain death and our inability to congregate in mass. Whether it is D-Nice getting over 100,000 to watch him spin records in his kitchen, or my friends and frat brothers hosting a virtual frat night on Zoom, we have found creative and innovative ways to connect. Hell, I even watched one of my high school classmates on Facebook Live dance in her living room for five minutes without music, LOL! It was just good to know that other people were finding a way to live through these uncertain times. Through some strange twist of fate, social distancing has made us more social. And I’m ok with that.
Conclusion
I wish I had a crystal ball, an ’85 DeLorean, or that phone booth Bill and Ted rode around in but, unfortunately I don’t, so I don’t know what the future holds. What will be our “new normal” as we navigate our way through social distancing? Who knows? What I do know is I will appreciate more the time where we can be “social” without the distance. I will set aside the sad excuses, and futuristic promises, and show people the love they need now. In a strange way, social distancing has provided us with a unique opportunity. We can give people the flowers they deserve now instead of when we bury them. If it took a pandemic and social distancing for us to realize the value of our relationships, then we were really in a bad place. Those who have lost loved ones cannot get their time back. Those of us who are still here have been blessed with the time to get it right. Let’s not wait until someone dies to “celebrate their life.” That, my friends, is another oxymoronic phrase that I no longer want to use.
#My3Cents
Sillethoughts
“Peep my ver-na-cular cuz I don’t know how to act…”
Sill-E Thoughts 
Volume 96: Social Distancing Has Made Us More Social
Posted on 04/06/2020
0
I have a confession to make. I’m not always the best friend. In fact, I take many of my friendships for granted. I have been immature, selfish, and a jerk(ish) over the years. I choose when I want to communicate while simultaneously getting angry when they don’t call me. (Side note: They should’ve never put the “ignore” button on my cell phone.) In urban vernacular, “Where they do that at?” LOL! Then, something happened. The curious term that has rapidly become a fixture in the American lexicon.
Social Distancing.
At first glance, the phrase seems like an oxymoron. How is it possible to be “social” while at the same time being “distant“? I mean, jumbo shrimp has nothing on the complex conundrum created by this twist of words. And yet, here we are. We have been forced by nature and our own arrogance to stay away from each other. A little over 100 years after the influenza pandemic devastated our planet, the coronavirus is climbing up the “deadliest diseases” ranks in a relatively short time.
The social distancing caused by the coronavirus has placed us in a precarious position. For me, it has caused me to remember and lament all the social situations I avoided for the silliest (pun intended) reasons. How many dinners and parties did I pass on because “I was tired” or “I didn’t feel like making the drive”? How many times did I lie when I said, “Let’s get together soon,” when I knew I wasn’t going to take the steps necessary to actually “get together”? All the missed moments and missed memories came flooding back. Social distancing broke the levy and I almost drowned from the guilt.
Time to Get Academic
What I and many others experienced as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent social distancing can be described as existential angst. Existential angst is defined as “a sense of disorientation, confusion, or dread in the face of a meaningless or absurd world.” In layman’s terms, we have suddenly and simultaneously been forced to face our own mortality in a semi- if not totally – isolated state. The anxiety comes from feeling a loss of control and the fragility of life. For example, all the future plans I was making and not keeping became much more important because my (and their) futures became in jeopardy.
Zoom Into Club Quarantine, Facebook Live, and Facetime
An obscure line from the original Jurassic Park movie always stood out to me. It has become more relevant during this time. The line was simple. It said, “Life will find a way.” I know you may be waiting for the earth-shattering explosion or cleverly crafted and timed mic drop, but that’s not what’s happening here. What is happening is life finding a way to thrive in the face of uncertain death and our inability to congregate in mass. Whether it is D-Nice getting over 100,000 to watch him spin records in his kitchen, or my friends and frat brothers hosting a virtual frat night on Zoom, we have found creative and innovative ways to connect. Hell, I even watched one of my high school classmates on Facebook Live dance in her living room for five minutes without music, LOL! It was just good to know that other people were finding a way to live through these uncertain times. Through some strange twist of fate, social distancing has made us more social. And I’m ok with that.
Conclusion
I wish I had a crystal ball, an ’85 DeLorean, or that phone booth Bill and Ted rode around in but, unfortunately I don’t, so I don’t know what the future holds. What will be our “new normal” as we navigate our way through social distancing? Who knows? What I do know is I will appreciate more the time where we can be “social” without the distance. I will set aside the sad excuses, and futuristic promises, and show people the love they need now. In a strange way, social distancing has provided us with a unique opportunity. We can give people the flowers they deserve now instead of when we bury them. If it took a pandemic and social distancing for us to realize the value of our relationships, then we were really in a bad place. Those who have lost loved ones cannot get their time back. Those of us who are still here have been blessed with the time to get it right. Let’s not wait until someone dies to “celebrate their life.” That, my friends, is another oxymoronic phrase that I no longer want to use.
#My3Cents
Sillethoughts
“Peep my ver-na-cular cuz I don’t know how to act…”
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