There is now a day, an exact time and place, that we of each will never forget. It is the day when we realized that the COVID 19 virus had changed not only our career but also our lives forever.
In so many ways, the events of recent days have seemed unreal. Unlike 911, we have experienced no visual assault, no broken buildings or smoke-stained faces. Instead, we have seen impersonal numbers on our TV screens that initially were small, then slowly grew and now are staggering.
In a flash, all that once seemed solid has faded before our eyes. Guests have disappeared, restaurants were told to close and we bid our staff a regretful farewell. Streets once full of people and the motion of life are suddenly silent and still.
Some of us went home and sheltered in place as ordered. Some were able to continue preparing food by offering a limited menu, converted now to take-out. Still others worked to see that the weary army of doctors and nurses battling the virus had warm food and our eternal gratitude.
Beyond such efforts, what more could one do? Where do we go? What kind of work can we now do? When so much has been lost, what path forward is possible? Perhaps the answer is an opportunity to rebuild, not what was, but something better that embraces the needs of both humanity, and simultaneously, the planet we all call home.
Such a change will require not only courage, but also leadership. And leadership is the beating heart of our worldwide Hospitality Industry. Within any well-run kitchen, there is structure and discipline; there is also fellowship and innovation. All of these elements will be needed as we adjust to a world far more digital and diverse than any we have ever known before.
Be assured people will gather together again because fellowship is a basic human need. The Hospitality Industry has the inherent capacity to show the world a new way to bring us forward together into a new sense of unity with each other. Let us invent together a new form of muse en place that extends beyond the walls of our kitchens to a feast that all humanity can enjoy.
