Baking & Snack - October 2020 - 10

editorial

Keeping it together
In the early days of this pandemic, I saw an interview
with a commercial flight attendant who was working for
the same airline on Sept. 11, 2001. She compared the two
situations and identified one distinct difference: After
9/11, everyone came together; during the pandemic,
we've been forced to stay apart.
We've now had six months to settle into the ways of social distancing. In some ways, the distance has eaten away
at me, and in others, it has helped me grow. It's amazing
how we as humans can learn to adapt.
I've seen it in that kid of mine, too. He's lucky enough
to play fall soccer, and this year, he secured the critical
position of center defender. I heard his coach tell
him he earned the spot with this ability to communicate on the field. As the goalkeeper's last
line of defense, the "center D" must anticipate
where the offense is heading and direct his fellow defenders on how to stop it.
That position requires a command of the
field that elicits the appropriate action from
his teammates. In his first game, I heard him
telling Charlie to "mark your guy" and directing
Dylan to "pull up" closer to the midline. He spoke
with this confidence that sounded familiar, but I just
couldn't quite put my finger on it.

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10 Baking & Snack October 2020 / www.bakingbusiness.com

And then it hit me. It was his Fortnite voice.
If you don't have a son between the ages of 10 and 25,
then you may not be familiar with this phenomenon.
The best way I can describe it is an online video game
that requires a lot of screaming in the basement. During
the COVID-19 lockdowns, Fortnite served as a means
for my kid to be with his friends. And now, after several
months of yelling things like, "Get back and cover me!"
he's emerged as a leader on the soccer field.
I can only imagine how many leaders have arisen since
March simply as a result of adapting during a time of
isolation.
There are so many ways that we have stayed together
even though we're forced apart. As groups begin assessing what events will look like in 2021 (I predict "hybrid"
to be the word of the year), I believe we will discover -
not only in ourselves but also in one another - how our
ability to adapt, regroup and overcome has impacted us in
ways we can't yet understand.
Winter is coming, and it's impossible to predict what
awaits us. But I know we will stay strong as an industry
and uncover new ways to grow in spite of - or, perhaps,
because of - that which is out of our control.
- Joanie Spencer, editor
jspencer@sosland.com

EDITORIAL
Editor
Editorial Director
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Contributing Editors:

Joanie Spencer
Dan Malovany
Nico Roesler
Charlotte Atchley
Anna Wiber
Donna Berry
M. Hikmet Boyacıoglu

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Baking & Snack - October 2020

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