Especially for Valentine's Day, I thought we might explore the topic of romance and the Irish.
I know we are not world renowned romantics like the French and the Italians, but Ireland is a land of poets and balladeers, so we must have a romantic side too.
Table of Contents
Sending Anonymous Valentine's Cards
When I was growing up in Dublin, St. Valentine’s Day was just for teenagers and those in their early 20's.
Unsigned cards were delivered through mail boxes across the city, raising all kinds of questions about would-be card senders, and potential admirers.
Who sent who a card was the topic of the day. Now that I am many years older I realize most of the cards were sent by parents, not yearning admirers.
Irish Romantic Credentials
Since those early days of penning anonymous Valentine's cards, I must confess I have done little to develop my romantic credentials.
Truth be told, the very mention of Valentine's Day makes me cringe, just a tad. After 23 years of marriage, I understand a little about love and commitment, but when Valentine's Day comes around I find all the commercially-driven, compulsory outpourings of love a little off-putting.
And so since my romantic credentials are so sadly lacking I thought I would recruit the help of the good folk at Celtic Cross Online, who put together this informative graphic about the Irish and romance.
Romantic Ireland Is Alive and Well
If you enjoyed this information you may wish to explore some lessons in love from old Irish sayings, or perhaps you might smile as you read about love and marriage, Irish style.
And so, you may wonder are the Irish any good at romance?
The big problem I perceive is that romance itself is very hard to define.
We Irish may not be any good at showy demonstrations of love and affection which are universally accepted as romantic gestures. But if you carefully examine the romantic traditions outlined in this graphic and our old Irish sayings, it's clearly evident we're very good at loyalty and commitment.
For me, romance has nothing in the world to do with money wasted on unnecessary gifts or flowers.
For me, romance is something completely intangible and priceless. It's the ongoing devotion that helps us plod onward together in life, through thick and thin, always trusting in each other's love and support.
Happy Valentine's Day to all!
Slán agus beannacht,
(Goodbye and blessings)
Mairéad -Irish American Mom
Pronunciation - slawn ah-gus ban-ock-th
Mairéad - rhymes with parade
P.S. This is not a sponsored post and I don’t have a business relationship with the good folks at Celtic Cross Online. I simply enjoyed their infographic, appreciate the effort they put into creating it, and thought you might like it too.
If you enjoyed this post here are some other stories and tributes you might enjoy.
Eulogy For An Irish American Mother
Between The Jigs And The Reels
Pat
This is a great post! I've been living in the Western US mts for decades.... my Irish HUGE extended family back east/ Great Lakes regions. Recently a family health crisis.. I acually started to cry.. something I RARELY did as a kid. Just received a lot of horried glances. That made me laugh because, as the saying that I grew up with goes, "cold irish"... Stiff upper lip, in a sense.. only hugs were more like rib splitting bear ones, w/ laughter. No kissing, etc "I love you"s said ... only signed on letters. That used to drive my mother crazy. In other words, don't wear your heart on your sleeve.. However, you could sing the sweet (and 'earthy', ,sardonic ballads, songs of seductions. I really like that term.. 'cold Irish'! Passions run high and wide, however, don't they?
Irish American Mom
Hi Pat - thanks so much for your great comment. I think I could write many more blog posts on these topics of the 'cold' Irish, and how we reserve our use of the term 'love' compared to other cultures. When I first came to America I found all the hugging and kissing when I met friends and relatives very confusing. My impulse was to stick out my hand for a quick hand shake, but I never knew if I was meant to hug or give someone a kiss. And my Irish peck on the cheek was often greeted with an exclamation of "that's not a real kiss." Oh the trials and tribulations I faced upon coming to America. Anyway I could ramble on and on about this topic. Thanks so much for stopping by and hopefully we'll discuss more of our Irish emotional expressions more in future posts.
All the best,
Mairéad
brian@irelandfavorites
Mairead I use to be a florist! the truth be told Valentines day is a day most florists would like to avoid or downright abolish. Rose demand soars at the time of the year when rose production is limited and then there is the estimating. Valentines day is on a Sunday with a Monday holiday and the school vacation week to follow, will half my regulars have gone away? I made that mistake once, what to do with five hundred roses the day after Valentines day, but then again that is the fun part of business. As for the Irish and romance, I don't think Irish Gaelic is a romance language, the landscape though awe inspiring probably wouldn't be described as romantic, and that beautiful creamy pint though it makes my heart a flitter it probably isn't the basis for love, maybe just a long term relationship.
Cheers, have a candy heart, and keep those huggy feely kissy neighbors at arms length.
Brian.
Irish American Mom
Hi Brian - Thanks for sharing the trials and tribulations of a florist at Valentine's Day. It really is a bit crazy how the greatest demand for roses is at a time of year when they are so hard to come by.
Irish or Gaelic is definitely not a romantic language - the gutteral sounds are strange to the ear of those more accustomed to hearing the softer tones of the English language. But when you listen to Irish you realize it is a very expressive language. I think I'll have to write a post someday soon about the huggy feely nature of life in America compared to Ireland.
So much to write, so little time.
All the best,
Mairéad
brian@irelandfavorites
The Huggy feely nature was written by Italian American Mom or Dad for that matter.
Irish American Mom
Very true, Brian. I experienced quite a culture shock when I first moved to America and would extend my hand for a handshake greeting only to be embraced and hugged and kissed by people I considered relative strangers. It really was a shock to my Irish system. 🙂 🙂 🙂