One of the delights of my island is the window that
overlooks the street from right beside my desk. AS I write we are watching a
few people doing some gardening and every so often a glistening soul will
wander past at the back of the leash of a very happy and content dog. People
are calm and for the most part friendly, although we can almost hear the mental
effort to remember our ‘social distancing.”
I find the term “social distancing” both quaint and a little
charming. It is unclear who coined it – the web merely accepts it as a given
term and then goes into the dreary but important details of how to follow its
tenets.
But as in all things the nuance of the phrase matters.
‘Social distancing’ is clearly distinct from ‘quarantine’ both in tis absence
of negative connotations and in that it allows considerably more freedom of
movement. For now, at least, we can venture out, we can visit the sun, we can
shop for essentials (and whatever luxuries drugstores and groceries may hold).
We can even patronize restaurants if we pick up and take out. This last
allowance has the doubly satisfying effect of giving us a respite from pork n’
beans and providing some much-needed income to endangered retailers.
The only thing we cannot do is physically contact one
another. We can’t stop to pet the neighbor’s cute dog. We can’t hug the old
friend or shake hands with the school buddy whom we chance to meet. In our
glances and our nods to one another as we pass on the quiet streets there is
regret and nostalgia. But there is also recognition; an awareness that the
neighbor, the friend, the stranger is there and part of the strange drama that
is unfurling in our lives.
That awareness is something new. How many times have we
walked down far more crowded streets without the faintest hint of togetherness?
Or been in our own neighborhood where people have no time for even a nod or a
sad smile.
The question about the phrase ‘social distancing’ is which
word modifies which? Is it society that must be distanced? Or is it the
distance that has been made more social?
[This Post was adapted from a essay originally published on Facebook the day listed above]
No comments:
Post a Comment