Are You Missing Collective Effervescence?

We recently had a group of human friends to dinner here in Glen Ellen. There were 7 of us, 2 from Madrid, Spain, 2 from Medford, Oregon, and 1 from Los Altos, California – and Andy and me. Getting ready for this dinner seemed unusually stressful for me. It’s not that the guests were unfamiliar. I’ve known the women for 59 years. It’s not that I never give dinner parties (see our blog about Dining In). Rather it’s that I haven’t given a real dinner party for almost 2 years!

There’s been so much in the news lately about what I just experienced. Getting back “in the groove” and meeting up with folks after our long Covid isolation doesn’t necessarily come easily but it’s so necessary. This NYTimes Opinion piece helps explain it all: “Post-Covid Happiness Comes in Groups.”

This NYTimes essay also caught my attention because I thought I could one-up Andy, the Sociologist, with this blog and refer to one of the most famous sociologists of all time, Émile Durkheim. Durkheim was the one who coined the term referred to in the article – “collective effervescence.” Instead of being in awe of my sociological awareness, Andy in today’s Andy’s Corner, ignores sociology and focuses on cinematography.

The essay’s writer, Adam Grant, a psychologist teaching at Wharton, summarizes it this way: We find our greatest bliss in moments of collective effervescence. It’s a concept coined in the early 20th century by the pioneering sociologist Émile Durkheim to describe the sense of energy and harmony people feel when they come together in a group around a shared purpose. Collective effervescence is the synchrony you feel when you slide into rhythm with strangers on a dance floor, colleagues in a brainstorming session, cousins at a religious service or teammates on a soccer field. And during this pandemic, it’s been largely absent from our lives.

Even if we need the energy and harmony that being with others provides, getting back to socializing seems to be causing anxiety for lots of us – not just dinner-party-givers but also dinner-party-guests. There’s lots in the news about this phenomena.

Though the article references singing in choruses, running in races, or participating in yoga classes as activities that bring about collective effervescence, I have no doubt that dinner parties do the same thing. After our recent dinner party, my Madrid friend emailed a sweet thank-you with the comment, “I haven’t laughed so much for quite some time.”

So here’s my recommendation for getting your dinner-party groove back. Make everything ahead of time and keep it all simple. SIMPLE. Then when the evening and guests arrive, you can kick back and laugh and enjoy every bit of the long-absent collective effervescence. And your being relaxed will relax your guests. It’s a win win situation.

Getting-Your-Groove-Back Dinner Party

Tortilla Chips with store-bought salsa or guacamole (we’re especially into blue corn – or blue multigrain – tortilla chips these days).

Chicken Posole Verde (use store-bought rotisserie chicken, and a good quality brand of chicken broth, rather than making it all from scratch; the roasted tomatillos and poblanos have enough unique, strong flavor to make up for any store-bought weaknesses :))

Cabbage/Radish/Cilantro Slaw to serve on top of the posole (this comes together very quickly and easily: thinly slice the cabbage and radishes, chop the cilantro, and toss it all with a little lime juice. Slicing and chopping can be done a day ahead of time, and then add the lime juice before serving).

Buttery Cornmeal Muffins – recipe below (make and freeze them ahead of time, wrapped in aluminum foil. About 25 minutes before eating pop them in a 400 degree oven. When you’re ready to take them out of the oven, cut one in half to be sure the middle is defrosted.)

Mexican Chocolate Cake – served with whipped cream (a simple cake to make; bake it and freeze ahead of time)