The cheek-kiss is out, for now, but Miami will emerge strong after COVID-19 | Editorial

It’s only been about two weeks, but the coronavirus already has changed South Florida, maybe permanently in some ways.

To save our lives, we are a community of people who suddenly have physically recoiled from each other.

We are going through something cataclysmic, another Hurricane Andrew, a sort of 9/11, the 2008 financial crisis. All brought forth new policy initiatives and reshaped the way we travel, think, see other people and protect ourselves.

No doubt, the way we deal with each other when we come together again will likely be different, more reserved — until Greater Miami gets its groove back. And it will.

For now, however, we’re not who we were:

In Miami, cheek-kissing a total stranger upon meeting for the first time not only is typical, it’s often expected. It’s a trademark of our community’s friendliness — loaded with germs, as we’ve always suspected and now know with no uncertainty. A little wave from six feet away will have to do for now. But the cheek kiss is a charming practice, one worth keeping when we get to the other side of this pandemic.

Going to a crowded AmericanAirlines Arena along with thousands of Miami Heat fans, sweating, screaming and high-fiving the strangers next to them sounds anything but celebratory. In fact, just the thought is downright frightening.

After coronavirus, employees who come to work with sniffles or a cough will forevermore be branded thoughtless pariahs, not diligent worker bees. They should be escorted from the premises.

However, the work-from-home boom may solve the previous problem, further curbing our face-to-face interactions as more workers opt for the meeting via Google Hangout rather than the meeting in the conference room — and as more employers agree to the new dynamic. Never heard of Zoom until two weeks ago? We bet you’re a pro at it now.

Ditto for education. Virtual learning, up to now a small slice of how students are taught, may explode with participants after a boost from coronavirus. Miami-Dade and Broward County schools should prepare for the shift.

Friends, coworkers and neighbors likely will be more concerned about your preexisting medical conditions. What is it that you had, again? We now know that anyone can be a Typhoid Mary.

Hours of television-watching and internet-scrolling have turned us into medical-supply experts. We know of the proficiency of N95 masks, the need for PPEs and the life-saving power of ventilators. And we’ve also learned that we should probably have stockpiles of crucial items in the garage. Just in case.

Grocery stores like Publix and others that have recently installed Plexiglas partitions at the cashier station will likely keep them up. Employees should be given gloves, sanitizer and, if available masks. They, too, are at great risk. Well-stocked hand-wipe and sanitizer stations likely will be readily available at the entrances of more than just grocery stores.

Our visual landscape surely will shift. How many of our favorite eateries or small neighborhood businesses will survive this financial blow and reopen? Continue to support small firms through e-commerce. Get restaurants’ takeout, many will deliver. And tip generously — through the app, of course — if you can.

One thing won’t change. When all is said and done, we South Floridians will rebuild our community. We’ve done it before.

And we’ve done it well.