Imagine a world without human intervention. This horrific pandemic is giving us a glimpse of this: satellite photos show a dramatic drop in pollution over China and Western Europe; aerial views show cities once immersed in smog are now fully visible with fresh air. Traffic is practically non-existent and our beaches, hiking trails and parks are completely empty. In Italy, the murky water in the Venice canals is the clearest its been in 60 years and dolphins and swans have returned to the now clear waters of the Italian coast.
For introverts who don’t like crowds, for people who are noise sensitive, for tree huggers who deeply care about climate change, there is a beautiful silver lining amidst the tragedy. When you are out walking, you don’t hear loud cars or planes flying above nearly as much; the park is gloriously empty and the loud music from car stereos and boomboxes has now been replaced by birds chirping. It is so much easier to connect with nature in this quiet solitude: you can hear the trees moving in the breeze, smell the fresh air. In fact, all our senses are magnified as we don’t have so much visual stimuli.
Take a drive to see how wonderful it is to drive in these times. Here in car crazy California, the roads are empty and driving times are reduced more than half to any destination you choose. The only cars, crowds or people you will see are all shopping hysterically for toilet paper. I haven’t been able to drive the speed limit on the freeway in years as traffic never allowed me to before but now can fly down the open highways. And driving up the coast line, you can see the beaches and deep blue ocean without all the chaos of cars and people surrounding it.
Another subtle but valuable benefit we are getting with this shutdown is time. We are all typically so busy, always in motion, rushing to work, shopping, dining, meeting with others. And now it’s all come to a grinding halt. Many of us don’t know what to do with ourselves as we are so accustomed to distracting ourselves with action. But we are human BEINGS, not doings. If we can surrender to this extraordinary moment, we may realize some valuable insights. The projects we always procrastinate: painting the bathroom, doing your taxes, learning how to play piano, reading that bestseller that’s been sitting on your bookshelf forever – we now have the time! But if we let the undercurrent of stress and anxiety overwhelm us, we stay numb and cannot tap into this energy. Try to accept – surrender! – this temporary phenomenon and channel your energy into something creative or productive. And if we are in isolation with family members, use this opportunity to spend valuable time with our kids, partners, even our pets. Take those long walks with them, have those deep conversations, foster those deep connections once again. And for all the introverts who have been practicing social distancing for years, be doubly grateful as this is heaven haha
This too shall pass. My hope is we will have a greater appreciation for all our freedoms and shared connection when we do return to normal life. Perhaps, with a renewed attitude of gratitude, we will be kinder to one another as we are all in this together now. We will not take the simple pleasures of life like dining out, grabbing a coffee, seeing a movie, for granted anymore. We will take renewed joy in our jobs, our workouts, our daily routines, all with a beginners mind and fresh energy.
So while we are having a challenging time adjusting to this new normal of self-isolation measures, let’s take a moment to acknowledge the small silver lining of tranquility and calm around us. Let us celebrate Mother Nature’s short breath of fresh air, unimpeded by human intervention and our incessant global travel. Try not to resist this brief pause and accept this odd reality for now and enjoy the silence. The frenetic pace of life shall return, so take a deep breath, pause, and try to enjoy this respite as best you can. Stay safe and be well.