Romance and Holidays

A splashy sunset bathes the mountains in a soft radiance; the light of a full moon dances on the surface of a rippling river: Romance and beauty adorning the natural world. Romance is not an all-powerful force, nor is it the essential or fundamental thing. By itself, it is form without content. Romance is moonlight on water, not the sunlight at noon. Yet romance brings artistic expression into the world, and enhances the quality of our lives.

In the art of love, romance arises out of adherence to form: the dancer becoming the form of the dance like the Tango, allowing the musician to bring life to the couple who form a display of emotions through their dance of the musical score. The painter romance is feeling evolving as he or she becomes one with the pose or inspiration and begins the piece using brush and canvas to emote romantic feelings for others to share. Romance also aligns in human relationships. Romance shows through the mastery of aesthetic and cultural forms that are honed by families over time and continue to be honored by family tradition through their food, their customs, and their beliefs..

Possession of romance is like the bearing of a beautiful gift to a newly married couple. Romance can add stature to those in humble positions, even the most humble gift of a small flower can emote the feeling of romance.. Take care to lend romance and dignity to small matters, while giving the weight of deep and careful consideration to matters of greater consequence.

The story of Camelot, King Arthur vs. Sir Lancelot d'loc fighting an epic battle for fair Guenevere is a story of romance. A legendary tale with the chased female, the virility of the suitors and their prowess in battle to win the fair Guenevere is a story about Romance. Guenevere is one of the most loved and hated characters in Arthurian lore because of her betrayal of her spouse with the married Lancelot du loc and the resulting fall of Camelot. The tale shows not only the seasonal change but the expressions of love that changed, love given to Guenevere. The chased damsel, Guenevere, wooed by the gallant knight and the noble king stays in the palace dancing, picking flowers and primping while the knight goes out to slay the dragon to show his virility and worthiness. Romance contains the expectation of winning someone’s heart.

If you look Romance up in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, it will tell you that romance means: a medieval tale of knightly adventure; a prose narrative dealing with heroic or mysterious events set in a remote time or place; a love story, or a romantic attachment / episode between lovers.

• Romancing is defined as having an attachment, or an episode between lovers.
• Love means having strong affection, warm attachment, and unselfish loyal, loving, and benevolent concern for others.
• Loving means to cherish, feel passion, attraction based upon sexual desire, devotion, tenderness, to caress, and take pleasure in.
• Passion is described as emotions distinguished from reason, sexual desire, and love.

Now days, the fair male is often wooed by the lovely damsel. The knight who would have swooped that damsel up onto his beautiful stallion in the past is confused as the archetype no longer applies. Chivalry of days gone no longer apply, damsels open doors for fair males. So the days gone by where manly males and shinny knights no longer assist the once delicate flowers.The once helpless damsel have grown up into a world of female self sufficiency. But the act of opening the door is still a quality that does not go unappreciated by that same damsel; now it's a signal of respect and appreciation.

Knightly lore with set roles of behavior enjoyed by past generations disappeared during WWII when mothers and daughters were taken out of the home and put to work in the factories. The hope of that knight and fair damsel story coming true became but a dream expressed in multiple books of lore.

Still, the desire for romance today continues in advertisements that display romantic notions with gifts of flowers, candy, elaborate robes and lingerie. There is also massive implications that expensive jewelry is romantic. These things can be romantic gestures that inspire romance so, the never ending displays continue throughout the centuries. Thus, romantic desire ushers romance into the present.

Over the years Romance and the Rose have become interconnected.
Have you ever wondered what do the colors of the rose actually means?
Red - Love, respect, courage and passionate love
White - Innocence, purity and pure love.
Light Pink - Grace, gentility, young or new love
Dark Pink - Gratitude
Yellow - Joy, gladness, and friendship / sometimes jealousy
Orange/Coral - Enthusiasm and desire
Red and White together - Unity and togetherness
Red and Yellow - Pure Happiness
Black - Sorrow and Death
Remember the underlining meaning when you give a rose to someone. Then think about what someone is saying to you when you get one. Roses are fantastic, what flower do you want to receive today?

Romance has always been about the senses: sight, smell, hearing, touching and tasting. Perhaps this is why the thought of aphrodisiacs, agents that excite sexual desire, were first identified. One of the most popular tastes has been Chocolate Dipped Strawberries. Here is an quick and easy recipe for your next encounter.

Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

Ingredients: 1 pt. Strawberries, 1 pkg. Chocolate chips, Colander, Double Boiler,
Bowl, Paper towel, Waxed Paper, Flat pan

Directions:

Wash strawberries in colander, pat dry with paper towel and set aside in bowl. Melt chocolate in boiler. Once chocolate is at the correct milky consistency, dip strawberries one at a time into the chocolate and place onto the wax paper standing up. Refrigerate to set the chocolate for up to 24 hours. Then serve.

There is nothing that gets to the heart of Romance like the taste of sweet food! And, there is nothing better than the romantic aroma of fresh baking to hit the spot. Try this Blintz or Roll recipe out on your special someone!.

Grandma’s Blintz Recipe

Ingredients: 4 eggs, 2 cups milk, 4 tbsp salad oil, 1½ cup sifted flour, 1 tsp. Salt, 2 cups sour cream, ½ cup butter, Confection sugar, Medium bowl, Mixer, Plastic wrap, Fry pan

Directions: Make fillings first. Make both of the fillings or double one recipe. Then, in a medium bowl beat eggs, oil and milk together. Slowly add flour and salt and beat until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Batter should be consistency of heavy cream. Put ½ tsp. butter in skillet at medium heat. Add 3 tbsp of batter and spread evenly. Lightly brown batter on the bottom and remove. Continue until all the batter has been used. Stack blintzes with browned side on top. Place 3 tbsp of a filling on top of a blintz and fold. Fold ends in to cover the filling and roll. Use melted butter to close seams. You can freeze now and keep for a week. If you refrigerate they keep for 1-2 days. To cook now, melt the rest of the butter in skillet. Cook over low heat seam side down until golden brown. Keep cooked blintzes warm and serve hot with sour cream.

Cheese Blintz Filling

Ingredients: 6 oz pkg. softened Cream cheese, 4 tbsp. Sugar, 4 cups dry Cottage cheese or Ricotta, 2 egg yolks, ½ tsp Vanilla extract, Medium bowl

Directions: In medium bowl combine cheese, egg yolk, sugar and vanilla. Beat with mixer until smooth then refrigerate until ready to use. Makes 2 ½ cups of filling.

Apple Blintz Filling Ingredients: 4 lbs tart cooking apples peeled, 2-cup sugar, 2 tsp cinnamon, ¼ tsp nutmeg, Medium saucepan

Directions: In a medium saucepan, combine apples, cinnamon, sugar & nutmeg. Cook filling over low heat for 15 minutes, or until apples are tender. Cover and let it stand about ½ hour. Makes 2 cups of filling.Note: You can also add 2-cups of cranberries to make it a CranApple filling if desired.

Special Note: The younger ones in the family often use Grams apple and cherry filling a bit differently than Grams did. We get store bought biscuits, roll them with a rolling pin into a rectangle, brush with melted butter, sprinkle with the filling of choice and beginning with the long end, roll up into a tight "pastry roll" and pinch to seam. Then bake on 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown, cooling for at least 10 minutes. Then cut into equal portions with a sharp knife - Yummy good!!

Needless to say sweet things are romantic and generally homemade is surely better served to spark up a romantic adventure!.

Holidays are all about Romance. You spend time on the holidays with the ones you love. Romance is different for everyone, and everyone is driven to find and keep it. Your expression of Romance can be as simple as bringing that special someone on the holiday to "meet the family."

Romance can be sentimental or idealized. It can be found in the use of flattery, someone opening the door, or chivalry when someone picks up something dropped. Romance evokes a feeling of mystery, excitement, humor, and provides distraction from our existence in the ordinary everyday life struggles. Romance is the path to love and celebrated with family and friends on holidays!

Romance on the holidays is there in food, fun, excitement, and remembrance for everyone to see and share in. Romance is here to stay!