Quality and quantity: words used to describe the mutually exclusive impasse between a job well done and job done many times over. In a post Industrial Revolution society, where “fast food”, “fast fashion” and “fast relationships” have taken over, quantity is often prioritized for the sake of convenience. At our core, we are social creatures. Capitalism inherently asks us to sacrifice our most invaluable assets, time and mindshare, in exchange for the comfort and convenience money can buy. I think about how this translates to the realm of relationships; it is often easy to cultivate a large quantity of shallow relationships for the sake, once more of capitalism. Networking is valued to continue contributions to the capitalistic structure; people are commodities and relationships are the casual currency by which these commodities are exchanged for opportunities. Divisiveness pervades and politics has become our identity so much so that we immediately disregard an entire human for their offending if differing beliefs. And an individual’s space, the physical expanse that they can create to separate themselves from one another, has become a literal hallmark of wealth. No wonder we suffer from such a high rate of loneliness and depression.
Nurturing quality relationships, investing in them and reaping the harvest of mutual trust and affection requires time, patience and effort. It requires seeing beyond the societally dictated markings of an individual and diving deep into what makes their soul happy.
In our memorable yearly reunions, Ru Jih and I saturate our limited time together truly living, filling the hours with as much deep conversation and hilarious adventure as we can. I feel positively recharged and capable of so much. This Rothko, with its deep saturation and movement from light to dark reminded me of the depth of this relationship and the turn our conversations can take from light hearted jabs at microinfluencer culture to pontifications on death. What do I know? In all actuality, we had 15 mins to explore the MoMa so we asked a guy laughing at our mad dash through the hallways to take a picture to help us commemorate.