What is romance? Someone asked me that last week, and I’ve been mulling it over in my head ever since.
My initial response was that romance is sweet gestures that sweep someone off their feet and let them know they are cared for in a deeper way. But romance is not chivalry. However, the response didn’t leave my lips; instead, I answered with a withholding I. Don’t. Know. And then the wheels began churning.
I first turned to my favorite online dictionary/translator, wordreference.com, to look up the meaning of the word. It had several.
noun: an exciting and mysterious quality (as of a heroic time or adventure)
verb: make amorous advances towards
Neither of those really fit my definition of romance. And, that’s when it hit me – romance is subjective. Perhaps what I consider to be romance isn’t what you consider to be romance. I see how this could pose some serious problems.
So, what is romance? My answer stands unchanged. I believe in fairytales and that true romance, like true love, never dies. I believe romance works both ways and shouldn’t be a public thing; it should be treasured. I believe it changes, just as people and relationships do but the excitement and happiness never do. Sometimes things go wrong, just like they do in fairytales. But, in the end, romance and love prevail if it’s true. And, I believe in all that because I have lived it. But to me, romance is not chivalry or becoming so comfortable around someone that you stop trying to romance them.
When I was googling around for examples of romance, many searches yielded results including The Notebook and Twilight. I believe in the love and romance in them both. So, I’ll end it with a quote that came to mind:
“Summer romances end for all kinds of reasons. But when all is said and done, they have one thing in common: They are shooting stars-a spectacular moment of light in the heavens, a fleeting glimpse of eternity. And in a flash, they’re gone.” – The Notebook
But some romances last a lifetime, for all kinds of reasons – but mostly love.
