Airport Romance

There are certain moments in life that are deemed to be more romantic than others.  These scenes are constantly played over and over on the movies and television shows, written about in books, and often fantasized about by people desperate to find that moment so built up in our heads.  One of these moments is without a doubt picking your girl up at the airport.  Just think about it.  Where does Ross have to chase down Rachel in the final episode of Friends so that he can win her back once and for all?  The airport.  How many shows of Seinfeld revolve around scenes in the airport?  Too many to count.  In light of this, I couldn't think of anything that would be more interesting than to experience the hype for myself.  It was this thought process that made me jump at the opportunity to pick my serb up at the airport following her lengthy trip, first from Belgrade to Munich, then finally on to the great United States of America.  I couldn't help but let myself get caught up in the supposed romance of the situation.  I imagined her walking down the ramp towards me as I casually strolled to greet her, calm and collected, before I took her into my arms and gave her a passionate and longing kiss.  I thought to myself that the world would just slip away around us, the commotion of the airport fading to nothing as if the only thing that mattered was the girl in front of me and the moment we were happily stuck in.  

All of this I'm sure sounds unbelievably corny, especially coming from someone who doesn't get caught up in such things, but I had been brainwashed by the world around me.  I had been taught to expect something, and so I waited in anticipation of the moment.  

I'm not sure if some things are a bust because they are hyped too much, or simply because you expect something different from what actually happens, but it is safe to say that picking the serb up in airport was far less romantic than I had expected.  It started well enough.  I saw her coming a ways off and was instantly drawn in as if I was seeing her for the first time.  In a few fleeting seconds I felt that twinge of nervous energy that you get when going out with a girl for the first time, and I was suddenly acutely aware of all my movements.  I was surprised in this sudden change as I was normally so relaxed.  As our eyes met and we drew close I felt the people around us pressing in as if we were suddenly in everyone's way.  In response to this feeling, I gave her a quick kiss, grabbed one of her bags and led her to a more isolated section to talk.  

Looking back, it is possible that I ruined the moment.  Had I slowed down, the romance of the occasion could have been saved.  However, I don't think that is the case.  It is easy to capture the perfect kiss on tv when the scene can be shot over and over, or in a book when the author can frame an image anyway they like.  It is much harder to capture this in the moment.  In fact, it wasn't until the next day when I think we both finally settled down enough in order to enjoy the moment that was meant for the airport.  Together, relaxed, and discussing some intellectual b.s. I finally felt it, and at the end of the day that is all either of us wanted.

Searching for More

With each passing day I am becoming more and more disenchanted with women.  Not so much with any female in my life, but rather women on a whole.  This of course doesn't mean that I'm going to stop pursuing, charming, and wining and dining them, but I think I'll do it more cautiously from now on.  There is so much self-obsession and overconfidence that to be frank I find it a bit sickening.  This rather stunning revelation occurred oddly enough when I recently went to the beach.  Not far from me were a pair of bikini clad girls around my age a tad too involved with themselves.  I was close enough to make out the general flow of their conversation which revolved around the belly button rings that they were both proudly sporting.  Now to be clear most males are decidedly unconcerned with the state of anyone's belly button ring.  Apart from being a bit too flashy and perhaps slightly slutty, they offer absolutely no redeeming value.  However, these teenagers were quite concerned with their respective piercings.  They were strangely fiddling with them and discussing in great detail the ring's effect on the skin around the belly button region.  They were completely engrossed in their conversation that it was as if life around them had stopped entirely.  To them life had whittled itself down to the two of them and their belly button rings.

Now please, don't take this post the wrong way.  Men are equally guilty of such vapidity.  In my mind the biggest crime is that men don't push for more.  In general, males are so infatuated with sexiness and beauty that things that can truly define a woman like intelligence, charm, and wit are completely overlooked.  Instead women merely focus on giving men what we seem to want: sex.  Of course, at times there is nothing better than hot, heavy, and unabashed sex.  However, most people fail to realize that there can be so much more.  Men fail to force the best out of the women they date.  Instead of experiencing excitement and romance in all facets of life, we are too often left to settle into a dreary and often unending rhythm.  All I'm saying is push your girl to be everything she is capable of, and in doing so raise your own expectations.  Don't settle when there is so much unlocked potential.

Why Risk It?

Apart from marriage, or some intensely committed long-term relationship that generally tends to represent marriage at its core, there looms one question about relationships that last: why bother?  Why put yourself through such an emotional roller-coaster only to see (in just about every case) the relationship that you have worked so hard to preserve crumble and burn into a pile of pain and suffering?  Is it truly worth putting your heart on the line when it is so likely that you will be left with nothing but the broken pieces?  I've heard the reasons behind long-term relationships range from the constant opportunity for sex to the idea that over time being with someone is simply easier than not being with them.  While I'm sure that these sort of relationships are prevalent, I like to think that they can be so much more.  Call me naive, but I believe that humans are capable of relationships, outside the confines of marriage, that amount to more than a shallow desire for sex or a simple insecurity attempting to avoid loneliness.

At the center of the idea is the obvious notion the we need one another.  It is generally true that humans are happiest when interacting.  There is a reason why social networking sites are so popular; they hone one's ability to communicate.  Of course it is true that interaction can come from a variety of places.  From simple day to day conversation, to constant discussions with friends, there are many opportunities to be with other people.  Despite this, in today's culture more and more people are talking, while fewer and fewer are taking the time to listen.  This I believe is what any meaningful relationship can provide.  The ability to confide in someone that understands you on a profoundly deep level.  You see, in a relationship both of you offer support for the other.  Right or wrong, insignificant, or incredibly meaningful, one has an outlet to express their thoughts and opinions.

It is this notion that makes a relationship possibly worth all the time and trouble.  I'm not saying that this always works, but there is always that potential; a potential that will never be realized if one is too focused on the mindless sex or simple comfort of being with someone.