Will you be my Valentine?

The English version of the article is in the continuation of the Romanian version.

"To-morrow is Saint Valentine's day,
All in the morning betime,
And I a maid at your window,
To be your Valentine.
Then up he rose, and donn'd his clothes,
And dupp'd the chamber-door;
Let in the maid, that out a maid
Never departed more."

 W. Shakespeare, Hamlet 

Uite ca a mai trecut un an si ne regasim din nou in intampinarea controversatei zilei de Sf. Valentin. Zic controversata pentru ca sunt atat de multe guri ce critica acest trend al romanului de a sarbatori ziua de 14 februarie, atat de multe critici aduse consumerismului ce se invarte in jurul acesteia si atat de multa indoiala cu privire la autenticitatea ei. Din punct de vedere cultural, nu ma opun sarbatoririi acestei zile pentru ca, in primul rand, noi romanii, nici nu ne tinem de traditiile Romaniei. Pentru ce avem ziua de Dragobete daca nimeni nu o sarbatoreste? Si mai mult decat atat, de ce nu as sarbatori dragostea in mod oficial mai mult de o data pe an? Din partea mea, sa fie si Dragobete, si Sf Valentin si inca vreo 3 sarbatori ale iubirii intr-un an. Cu cat mai multe cu atat mai bine. Vreau iubirea sa fie celebrata, fara numar.

Mai mult decat atat, pentru foarte mult timp am trait sub falsa impresie ca oferitul de flori, ciocolata si felicitari de Sf. Valentin este o stupida inventie a culturii vestice, si mai ales a Statelor Unite ale Americii, pentru a stimula cheltuitul banilor si a aduce profit companiilor ce mizeaza pe idealismul indragostitului de zi cu zi. Insa m-am inselat. Ziua de Sf Valentin a fost sarbatorita in Europa inca din secolul 15 prin daruirea de cadouri intre indragostiti, mai ales flori, felicitari personalizate si alimente cu inalt continut de zahar. Felicitarea de mai jos, spre exemplu, este din anul 1909. In definitiv, Sf. Valentin ramane o sarbatoare ce a existat in sanul culturii si civilizatiei europene de secole, doar faptul ca observam si constientizam ziua asta, e dovada ca putem rezona cu bogata cultura a vechiului nostru continent. Iar cei ce se vor "sceptici" nu fac altceva decat sa se ascunda si mai mult sub cochilia ignorantei si a nepasarii.

Si ca sa nu ma lungesc prea mult, spun de ce nu? De ce nu as sarbatori dragostea, fie ca este pe 14 Februarie, pe 24 Februarie sau in orice alta zi a anului? Chiar si pentru cei mai "drepti" din turma, spun, nu o sa ne aduca la faliment o floare si o ciocolata, si nici vanzatorul din coltul strazii nu isi va trimite copilul la universitate pe banii cheltuiti pe un fir de trandafir. Remember, ziua de Sf. Valentin nu te va adanci in saracie, dar nici nu va favoriza aparitia vreunui Cupidon gras ce arunca cu sageti pasionale spre obiectul iubirii tale secrete . Asa ca, va spun voua, Happy Valentine's Day! Si la mai mare!

So another year has passed and we find ourselves welcoming the controversial day of St Valentine.  I call it controversial because there are so many mouths that criticize this trend of Romanian people of celebrating the day of 14^th of February, there are so many doubts regarding the consumerist phenomena which revolves around it, and so much suspicion towards the authenticity of this celebrating day. From a cultural point of view, I do not oppose this day because, first of all, we Romanians don’t even celebrate and cherish our traditional holidays. What for we have the day of Dragobete if we don’t celebrate it? And more than that, why wouldn’t I celebrate love more than once a year (officially or not)? From where I stand, let there be Dragobete, Valentine’s Day and another 3 more days in the calendar celebrating love.

For the longest time I lived under the impression that the offering of flowers, chocolates and cards for Valentine’s day was the stupid creation of western culture and of The United States especially, designed to stimulate the spending of money and to bring profit to companies that falsely encourage the idealism of the man in love.  But I was wrong. Valentine’s Day has been celebrated in Europe since the 15^th century through giving flowers, personalized Valentine cards and foods with high content of sugar. The card below, for instance, was created in 1909. Ultimately, Valentine’s Day remains a celebration day that has existed within the European culture and civilization for centuries, and, in my humble opinion, there is no harm in resonating with the vast culture of our old continent.

I don’t want to be too long and boring, so I say, why not? Why wouldn’t I celebrate this day, be it on the 14^th of February or 24^th of February, or any other day of the year? Even for the “righteous” in the flock, I say, it won’t bring you to bankruptcy to buy a flower and chocolate on this day, neither the man sitting at the corner of the street, selling some flower will send his child to university from a Valentine’s Day sale. Remember, Valentine’s Day will not through you in the middle of poverty nor will bring, to the salvation of your love life, a fat baby Cupid who throws arrows of love towards your object of desire.  It is just a day, possibly a beautiful one.

Beautiful dance of deception

Dupa indelungi dezbateri, am decis ca, incepand de azi voi scrie blogul meu si in limba engleza. Desi sunt constienta ca nu ma pot traduce la fel de bine intr-o limba ce imi este, in definitiv, straina, voi face un efort sa transmit o particica din mintea mea si cititorilor internationali. Dar ca sa revenim la lucruri mai serioase...

Trebuie sa o spun din nou: rasa umana ma dezamageste. Ma intreb daca am putea cumva inlocui natura diabolica pe care noi, homo sapiens sapiens, o avem. Nu vreau ca titlul sa fie ambiguu pentru dragii mei cititori, dar in postul asta voi vorbi despre dragoste. Exista oare un asemenea concept precum dragoste pura, inocenta? Exista oare iubire neconditionata? Iubirea in care esti gata sa dai totul in schimbul a nimic? Inclin sa cred ca raspunsul la toate aceste intrebari este NU. Pana si vechiul mit al gradinii raiului e infestat de iubire conditionata si razbunatoare. Dumnezeu spune foarte clar cuplului primordial sa nu manance din copacul Cunoasterii Binelui si Raului pentru ca altfel "izvorul" de iubire va seca, iar cand cei doi gusta din fructul oprit sunt izgoniti din gradina raiului. Gata! Iubirea a incetat. Dumnezeu ii arunca pe cei doi intr-o lume pustie si ii lasa sa infrunte orice obstacol fara pic de ajutor. Unde a disparut toata iubirea? Unde s-a dus nevoia de protectie a celui pe care il iubesti? Si mai mult decat atat, daca forta suprema la care se inchina milioane de oameni a oprit izvorul iubirii, cum putem noi muritorii de rand sa il repornim si sa il mentinem tanar?

Daca stam sa ne gandim bine, unul din cele mai vechi conflicte ale omenirii, Razboiul Troian (si da, acest eveniment este dezbatut de istorici), a izvorat din intrigile si intunericul iubirii. Zeita dragostei, Afrodita, a rasucit si incurcat atat de tare cararile iubirii facand-o pe Elena, sotia lui Menelaus sa se indragosteasca de Paris, incat acest sentiment, aparent pur si nobil, s-a transformat in cel mai performant instrument al manipularii. Zeii au stiut ce au stiut. Iubirea descopera vulnerabilitatea fiecarui individ, si poate fi utilizata in cele mai meschine scopuri. Iubirea transforma ratiunea in pura copilarie, transforma nesemnificativul in suferinta si fericirea in durere sfasietoare. Atata putere se afla in mainile iubirii incat noi, muritorii, cadem invinsi. Singurul lucru la care putem spera este intalnirea unui suflet ce va tine in palma inima noastra, si nu o va sufla in bataia vantului precum o papadie, ci o va ocroti si proteja pe veci. Singura dificultate este gasirea unei persoane ce poate ca nici nu exista. Si atunci ce raspundem in fata iubirii?


After many debates, I've decided that, starting today, I will write my posts in English too. I am well aware that I cannot translate myself well enough using a language that is ultimately foreign to me, but I will do my best to divulge parts of my confused mind to my international readers as well. So let's get down to business...

I have to say it again. Human race continues to disappoint me. I wonder if there is a way in which we can replace the evil nature that we, homo sapiens sapiens, seems to own and possess.  I don't want the title of my post to be ambiguous to any of my dear readers, so I am telling you from the start I will be talking about love. "Oh, love such an amazing experience..."(many would melancholically say). I can't stop asking myself if there is such a concept of innocent, pure love? If there is such a thing as unconditional love? Are we, individuals, ready to sacrifice everything, not waiting for something in return, in the name of love? I incline to respond to all of these question with a simple word: No. When we look back, we realize that the oldest myth of man kind, the myth of Adam and Eve, is infested with conditional and vengeful love. The ever loving God commands to the primordial couple not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Wrong, because if they do, severe consequence will fall upon them. The minute Adam and Eve taste the forbidden fruit, all the love and forgiveness goes out the window.  That is it! The lights went off and the love has stopped. God throws the two sinners into a world of unknown, a world of solitude, and let's them face all the obstacles of the world without any divine help. So where did all the love go? Moreover, if the supreme force in which millions of people believe, has clogged the spring of love, how can we mortals start it again and keep it young? 

If we give this idea a good thought, we realize that one of the oldest conflicts between humans, the Trojan War (and yes, I know that historians are debating the veracity of this event), sprang from the plots and darkness of love. The goddess of love, Aphrodite, twisted and manipulated the concept of love so badly, making Helene, wife of Menelaus, to fall in love with Paris, that this emotion that apparently is pure and noble, became the ultimate manipulation instrument. Gods knew where the power rests. Love reveals the vulnerability of every human being and it can be used in the most trivial way. Love transforms reason into pure naivety, transforms the insignificant into suffering, and turns happiness into heartbreaking pain. There is so much power lying in the hands of love, that we, mortals, don't have any other choice than to surrender. We can only hope that we will meet another soul, that will keep our heart in their palms, without hurting it, but protecting it and defending it against the wind of uncertainty. The only difficulty is finding such a soul in this putrid sea of weakness and vice. After all this, how do we respond to the overwhelming power of love?