By Angel Nuñez
A friend of mine posted this verse of as song on Facebook and all of her friends tended to agree with the idea that men have lost the romanticism that was common in the past. I agree with the song too and also believe that women too have lost their romanticism. Here is the verse in Spanish.
Ya no HAY HOMBRES ASI!!
Hoy ya no se escriben cartas para enamorarse
Hoy ya las flores no se ven
donde ha quedado aqel romance?
ya no existen los poemas para conquistarse
ahora se mandan solo mails
ya nadie entrega chocolates.
Okay let’s translate it.
There are no more men like that.
Today couples do not write letters anymore to declare their love.
Today bouquets are not seen anymore.
Where has romance ended?
There are no more poems to woo a woman.
Today there are only emails.
Nobody sends chocolates anymore.
Obviously this song is speaking about the romantic days of the past. Letters were written to woo a lady and to declare one’s love, and the beauty of it is that those letters were kept in a special box as a souvenir or remembrance of their love. Very often when the couple was married, they would bring out these letters and recollect the beginning of their loving affair. Or if things went sour and one of the couple was not faithful to his or her love, the letters would serve to remind each other of promises of love made in their earlier days at the beginning of their relationship. Very romantic, isn’t it?
Bouquets of roses or any special flowers are not sent anymore as common as was the practice in the old romantic days. Men sent flowers with a love message to a young lady they had an interest in. Flowers were sent to one’s fiancée as a token of his love and renewal of his commitment and loyalty. And in the case of a small quarrel between the couple, the flowers served as a sign of reconciliation and renewal of their love. Quite romantic, don’t you think?
Many romantic ballads and love songs included poems that would lure a woman into acceptance of the young man making a love proposition. Poems were used in birthday greeting cards as well as in radio greetings for a birthday or anniversary. Young men developed the art of writing poems and even used them to attract a woman’s attention as she passed by. Trust me, with the romantic language used, it was not considered as sexual harassment. It was considered very romantic and acceptable indeed.
Now is this enough to convince anyone that in days gone by, there was a lot more romanticism than today? But there was more. Men and women expressed their romantic love for each other by sending boxes of chocolates with a love note, a flower, or a dash of perfume or cologne on the wrapper. Ladies would save a piece, a curl, or braid of hair and give it as a keepsake to her boyfriend or fiancé. She kept his handkerchief with fondness. And he kept her handkerchief with affection. He kept a photo of her in his wallet. She kept his photo in her purse.
Whenever a young man went to visit his fiancée every night, he had to take something for her. It could be one chocolate bar, a few packets of her favorite chewing gum, even peanuts or pipits (roasted pumpkin seeds). Talk about romanticism. Even the nightly visit by a boyfriend to his girlfriend was a romantic affair. It was part of the culture that a boy should visit the girl at her home every night seven to nine p.m. If he should ever miss a night, it gave her something to think about, or even worry. Romantic, indeed very romantic! However, nothing beats the romanticism of twenty five years ago than the serenade- a visit to the girl’s house with mariachis or a trio with music and songs. Now that is indeed the extreme or romanticism, but that will be an entire issue for next week. Enjoy.
La Serenata -The Serenade
Below is a romantic song from Pedro Fernandez -Amarte a la antiqua (Love you the old-fashioned way) Enjoy!
25 Years Ago Books Can Be Purchased At:
-Ambergris Today -Lala’s Store -Chico’s Meat Shop -Pampered Paws -Ambergris Jade -San Pedro BTB Office -Aquarius Salon (Kim) -S.P. Town Library -Di Bush –Richie’s Stationery -San Pedrano’s Stationery -Rum, Coffee & Cigar House
Contact the Author at: nunez_nest@yahoo.com
