The World is too Much with Us
The World is Too Much with Us!

The World is too Much with Us

As I picked up my pace walking to the bus stop in the cold morning air, not so much because I was running late, as it was to generate some body heat
The rows of eucalyptus on the side of the mountain framed the edges of the lagoon lake beyond. The homes lining the side of the winding mountain road were still sleepy, I continued walking as the valley up ahead bathed in the morning sun sprawled out up against the San Bruno Mountain range on the far end of the valley. Down below was Glen Park, home of dog walkers, moms with little children in need of some airing, the skateboarding ramp and the Christmas tree all decked out. I soaked in the crisp morning air and thought the “world is too much with us”!

Sights, Sounds and Smells

Agreed that, “Frosty the snowman” can sound a bit perky, while “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas” can sound tired after spinning for the umpteenth time in the drugstores and supermarkets. Plus, sleigh bells really do not ring in most of Sunny California. Yet, conditioned like a Pavlovian dog, I respond to the sound and the smells of gingerbread and pine. As I walked down the side of the San Bruno Mountain, on the edge of the sleepy town of Brisbane, stepping over a pile of tree barks and pine needles. The freshness of the morning air greeted me with a cheerfulness and anticipation that felt much like Christmas. Christmas is derided by many who do not celebrate. As if expressing the joy of it somehow shuns the importance of expression of other occasions?!

Christmas, a winter celebration in Kolkata, India is natively called, “Borodin” (which literally translates to “Big Day”). Park street and the environs are decorated with lights. Many locals splurge on a cake from Flurry’s on this special occasion. Growing up, I put together a nativity scene with ping pong balls for heads and cardboard cones for bodies of Joseph and Mary, little cotton ball lambs and cotton ball snow. The kit kept us busy and when the nativity scene came together with baby Jesus comfortably nestled in a matchstick cradle, my siblings and I took a lot of pride in it. The Christmas nativity kit aided for father daughter bonding and made for a beautiful memory.

“I’d rather be, a Pagan suckled in a creed outworn; So, might I
Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn”.

Story Telling

“Story telling”, a must have skill in corporate branding today, is in essence a need for technological expertise with humanistic thinking capacity. Answer the Public and other sophisticated SaaS detect most searched keywords offering valuable insights into potential customer behavior. Carefully researched and crafted images and opinions go viral on the internet because we collectively respond to predictable Pavlovian stimulus. Keyword searches yield insights into people’s curiosity and thought process, quickly churning collected data into a simulacrum of ethos that plays out like a computer-generated collective consciousness. The individual, rather than telling the story or participating in one, is swept up like a pawn in the algorithmic saga spawned by social media and marketing campaigns for measured success in a shared marketplace. “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!”

taniasen

Tania Sen is a contemporary artist of Indian origin who lives and works in Philadelphia. Using mythology, politics, pop culture, ads, signage, Tania explores the process of transformation of human perception in an age of digital reproduction. Combined with Ai, it is a reality bending journey!