The thing about European men……………….have you ever felt something so strongly that you just have to share it regardless of the response it may provoke. This is one of those things. Will it offend? Perhaps. As I was walking, eating and drinking today, these thoughts came to me in such urgency.
European men LOVE WOMEN — as most recently expressed by French and Italian men in Paris. They love their essence, their walk, their talk, their energy, their feminine allure, all of it. More importantly, they LOVE them because they either understand them or MAKE an effort to try to. It’s part of their culture.
A quick note before I get screamed at by all American and non-European heterosexual men, I’m talking about a cultural nuance that is so prevalent, that we feel it in our bones. It becomes them and vice versa if they’re open to it.
American men LIKE women a lot, there is a ton of respect (often mutual) and they know how to fall IN LOVE. Our culture doesn’t train them to LOVE women in the same way, in the same way American culture does not train us to LOVE food, wine, and the arts in the same way that European culture does.
A female friend of mine added this comment when I emailed her this very blog post before I went live with the post….(she is roughly my age, was married to an eastern European, lived in Europe for years and now lives in the East Bay). She says, “it’s like their passions are more intense and present because they are inundated with less stimulus so they have more to give.” I’ll add, “you also feel as a woman that they want to give.”
An American male friend of mine a few years older than me who has lived in Europe and speaks French adds this comment as he talks about how he feels when he treats a woman in a way that heightens her feminine core, “it’s poetic and magic and dances, which we as a culture are almost completely uninterested in.”
Hmmm, strong: I am not sure that I would have used the word uninterested, yet he is absolutely right. I don’t use it here because I’m almost afraid to.
This realization and understanding is more real than any personal emotion I have ever felt between the sexes. It lingers over decades, it lingers over conversation, it lingers after a gentle kiss, a walk on the beach, a toast at a cafe, a picnic on a river….and it lingers over and over again…….
I still love the American male raw energy and masculinity. When they turn it on without approval from any other entity, business associate or buddy, it has so much power. Then, it becomes truly masculine. Then, it becomes sexy. Then, it becomes real. Ahhhh, yes, there is so much power in our own masculinity and feminity when we completely and authenticially embrace it rather than resist it.
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
