Stephen Mwangi
Software Engineer & Computer Scientist
Vemödalen
vemödalen (n.) the frustration of photographing something amazing when thousands of identical photos already exist—the same sunset, the same waterfall, the same curve of a hip, the same closeup of an eye—which can turn a unique subject into something hollow and pulpy and cheap, like a mass-produced piece of furniture you happen to have assembled yourself.
I recently came across the word vemödalen Pronounced “vey-moh-dah-len.” while reading John Koenig’s phenomenal work titled The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows. Vemödalen is the fear that originality is no longer possible and for a person who has been mulling over the idea of starting yet another blog, I couldn’t think of a better first post. Why start a new one when everything has already been “done”?
Answer:
That you are here—that life exists and identity,
That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse.
What else is there to say? When you get your cue, you say your line.