Why I have come to hate the term ‘new normal’
There is nothing ‘normal’ about what we had before the pandemic.
Before the Coronavirus hit, we were struggling to deal with climate change effects, with raging wars, political wrangling, social conflicts and inequality of all sorts.
But life seemed to stand still in March 2020 and until all but recently, we struggled to believe we could shrug off the heavy cloak of fear and the unknown. This period of ‘standby,’ which I know very well from my time being evacuated from war zones such as Iraq in 2003 on multiple occasions, seemed to be never-ending. I learned that actively waiting for an end to the misery was counterproductive; better to give way to a new distraction, some new project, pastime, or other-worldly belief. It was only later that I became familiar with mindfulness, something which I still struggle with but which I know has helped many cope with their stressful lives.
Even if the fashionable term ‘new normal’ conveys logically correct meaning in that it describes a break in pattern from a previous situation, it also implies that what came before, the ‘normal’, was perfectly alright.
For most of us, it makes sense to want to return to a time when we didn’t have to worry about wearing masks, not getting infected, the constant worry of losing a loved one and having our movements restricted. Though it should be noted that a majority of people around the world were experiencing similar circumstances even before the lockdown.
But instead of taking the time to rethink our (often unsustainable) way of life, our carefree decisions and time-old structures, we become deeply nostalgic about the past, calling it ‘normal’.
I understand wanting to recapture that sense of security, peace of mind and physical safety. What I don’t understand is why we would throw away such a golden opportunity to pause and reflect.
Scientists have documented the (albeit short-term) transformative effects the global lockdown has had on wildlife, nature, and the climate. This on its own should be a sign that we had not previously been living in a “normal” situation.
Many of us rediscovered the beauty of living with less, spending more time with family members and finding creative ways to pass our time. That it needed a global public health emergency to make us do so is not as reassuring.
Besides all those who were directly affected by COVID-19, many suffered both physically and mentally during this period. The impact of this deep pain and suffering should not be underestimated.
Let us also remember the countries where people were already eking out an existence, barely traversing the fault lines of poverty, hunger, war, corruption, the inadequacy of the so-called global order, disease, climate change, and a host of other ills. In many of these countries, people were more concerned about getting the next meal on the table, let alone dealing with the pandemic.
Knowing that we are still not out of the woods and that this is a preview of the new emergency we might well face again in the future, why not think twice before wanting to rush back to pre-pandemic ‘normality’?
Who would want to return to that ‘normal’?
I understand the logic of regaining our equilibrium and exiting the constant cycle of fear. One cannot deny that part of human nature is striving to live better and avoid any attack on our physical and mental health. In this sense, we enjoy establishing a routine as it gives us a modicum of security in the midst of the daily chaos of our lives.
But recently we have been given a golden chance. A chance to step back, to reflect on the state of our lives.
Between returning to life with no taste, no spice, no flavour and seizing this opportunity to rethink and remould our routines, our systems, I know which path I’d choose.
Of course, many of us live a routine existence and are tied to a dull and lackluster schedule of must-dos and have to-dos. We say we are ‘trapped in a life that we cannot change. But should we resign ourselves to this drudgery? Who says we cannot get out? At least part of it is our choice, whatever we decide to do. We decide when to stop and there may well be consequences of that decision, but that remains our choice. The consequences, whether real or perceived, are usually at that threshold we think we cannot surpass, otherwise, the person, the entity, organisation, or ideology who has control over us is no longer effective. So how can we deal with such situations?
Instead of resigning ourselves to one option, let us broaden our horizons, believe the impossible. Who would want to return to a situation where we absolutely thought there was no way out in the first place?
If life was leading us back towards unwanted consequences, instead of merely trying to make superficial changes here and there which are obviously not sufficient, let us rethink our systems, our constants, our ways of living. Environmental activists have been screaming about this for decades and while people listen and hear, in hindsight we were painfully slow to act. Now that we have found ourselves in this awful pandemic, we have been forced to slow our actions, stop travelling, find alternative ways to work together, to produce, to support our livelihoods. All this has definitely made us change our actions but only because we were forced to, for our own safety.
In fact ‘the new normal’ was first used in 1919 by Henry A. Wise Wood to refer to the period beyond an initial transition to a changed world following the First World War. But the sense in which it was used then was forward-looking. Today’s use of the term seems to be centred on our current predicament of being stuck in standby, not knowing when the effects of the pandemic will be over.
Hence my question about what ‘normal’ actually is if we are striving as human beings to make change and progress? If everything is just normal, even if it is the new normal, then life will taste of nothing. It comes down as always to why we don’t change as human beings (see my article on that below).
The new normal suggests we were living the best life ever directly before this health tsunami. For hundreds of millions of people around the world it made their already exhausting lives even worse. Supply chains dried up. Tourism died because of the lack of travel. Air travel businesses ground to a halt. Economies were badly hit. Many (reluctantly) went online but others simply dug deeper and deeper and had nowhere to hide, nothing to hope for, once again subject to the whirlpool of desires of a privileged few.
So where do I suggest we go with this? Instead of harking back to the so-called ‘normal’, let us create a grossly abnormal change to our society.
These concrete steps are my call to action for what we can each do to address this situation instead of blindly picking up where we left off:
- Question our existing privileges and what we take for granted.
2. Be grateful for our friends and family and consider finding new ways to connect.
3. Reflect on how we can change our habits to lead a more sustainable life.
4. Think deep down how we can make the world a better place, whether through the way speak or behave.
5. Ask yourself are you really doing all you can to help those in need.
6. Consider if your old routines were really making you happy or if they inadvertently harmed someone else.
If we look carefully at how we are leading our lives, it will help us be more mindful of the impact we are having and even what we can do to make others’ lives that much better.
Our every word and deed counts.
