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Alive Enough

Thursday, April 14th, 2011

From concepts of “the singularity” to “the robotic moment” to the hours we spend on screen, to the digital online layer that now constitutes significant parts of our lives; the communion thirst I talked about in my previous post has still got a hold on me. I was struck with resonance on the subject tackled by MIT professor Sherry Turkle in her book “Alone Together: Why we expect more from technology and less from each other“. It was her reference to the term “alive enough” which ‘kids’ are using as jargon to describe the idea that simulated experiences of life are just as good as real experiences, that added some inspiration to my latest little ditty. By the way, the NPR radio program “Being” just did a great interview with her that you should check out: “Alive Enough – NPR/ Being Podcast”

Alive Enough

Words + Music by Deiren Masterson © 2011

Jenny Bend has got a thousand friends
Gathered close inside her social web
They’ll be there for her until the very end
Of her session
Her last online session
Her online obsession makes her feel
Alive enough

You, I know that you’re feeling down
You, need someone to be around
You, need some authentic feel and touch
You, need to be liked so much
I know

William B is a somebody
For every thought he has he’ll share a clever tweet
Keeps him there until he has the chance to meet
His reflection
His online reflection
Your online reflection will make you feel
Alive enough

You, I know that you’re feeling down
You, need someone to be around
You, need some authentic feel and touch
You, need to be liked so much
I know

Jean Éclair checks in everywhere
So if you miss him you can see he’s clearly there
Almost next to you and somehow off somewhere
In the heavens
The great online heavens
The online cloud heaven will make you feel
Alive enough

You, I know that you’re feeling down
You, need someone to be around
You, need some authentic feel and touch
You, need to be liked so much
I know

So like a baby bird in an apple tree
Who says to Ma, ” I know I got these growing wings
And I’ll fly away but when you hear me sing
We’ll be together
We’ll be together
We’ll be together and we’ll feel
Alive now”

You, I know that you’re feeling down
You, need someone to be around
You, need some authentic feel and touch
You, need to be liked so much
I know

Tags: Alive Enough, Alone Together, Being, deiren masterson, facebook, failed solitude, hope, Human Experience, Krista Tippett, loneliness, MIT, MIT Initiative on Technology and Self, NPR, Relative Strangers Interactive, Robotic moment, Sherry Turkle, soical networks, twitter
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