Enchanted

I don’t know of any male who has not succumbed to the charm of a woman in his life. A teenage boy meeting an older girl or woman becomes a vegetable when thinking about her. He is obsessed until the next heartthrob comes along, and the experience is repeated.

Later in life he is less easily swayed off his feet, but the stimuli that do it to him do not diminish. It could be a song by a woman. He could see a video about her, or even a clip in a movie that creates a fixation on some of her charms that might leave most women and many men untouched about her. But not him! He is fixated for the nonce.

In some instances all it takes is a photograph to set him in this mode of worship. She does not have to do anything. In fact, she could be totally innocent (oh, well, you know, “this time” anyway).

What is it that men find so attractive about women even in the abstract, such as a photograph that shows only socially approved prudence?

I remember two instances in my life that could have been life changing. They turned out not to be, because I was already married to MW, so any change at these times would have been inappropriate.

One was as I waited in a lobby to meet with a person on professional business. I was out of college, earning a good living, becoming good in my profession. I say this only to point out that I was not one of those horny, hungry, shallow, college students at the time (this was later). I had the perspective of home, family, plan for the rest of my life, etc... As I sat in a chair a young woman walked in to see the receptionist. She was about my height, endowed with curves rather than straight lines. Her waist length hair in a thick single braid swung across her back as she sinuously carried her charms across my field of view. Blond hair, wide curves, tall stature, perfect legs, young beauty. I was impressed. I could have followed her anywhere.

Next time was years later. I was on vacation. I walked into a farmer’s market place wanting to buy some fruit. I was already happily married to MW, so I was not exactly looking for extracurricular affairs. But there she was, the woman of any man’s dream. I stared, salivated, and hid my erection. I left to avoid a problem by embarrassing myself.

A man never really knows how he will be affected by a woman until it happens. Aside from the visual, in some cases aural enhancement that these wonderful creatures provide, there may be others…

My sense of smell is the most powerful of what I have. So, being close to a woman who attracts me can enhance her power tremendously by her emanating something that gets to my olfactory sensors. Perfume is the first one would think. Yes, it is a powerful attraction. Getting closer makes me accessible to subtle scents of her pheromones emanating from her skin, especially underarms. I am not talking gross sweaty odors. I am saying that a woman can be devastatingly charming by imparting some of her scent in an otherwise benign and civilized setting.

We can take this further by assuming some familiarity that would enable, even offer, the scent of her primary attraction. In, shall we say, professional or diplomatic situation, such scent may be offensive. But on a personal basis, when we are attuned to each other’s attraction, it can be devastating to a man. He becomes a slave to her in no time. Figuratively speaking, of course.

There is more about women, and I cannot do justice to it today, in this blog, or ever. But there is another aspect of a woman’s charm that consists of all of what I said above and more. It is total presence of her when a man meets her in person. Her visual attraction, her voice, the way she speaks, her manner of behavior, her dressing to the point, her vocabulary and how she conveys her thoughts can overwhelm any men. Any one or two of these attributes would do it. But in total, the man has no chance.

This brings me to one of my favorite songs, Summer Wine, by Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazelwood.. I can have any number of interpretations and fantasies about this song. They all come back to a woman who decides to attract a man to herself, and he has no choice. She is confident. She knows what she is doing to him:

“Strawberries cherries and an angel's kiss in spring

My summer wine is really made from all these things

Take off your silver spurs and help me pass the time

And I will give to you summer wine”

I would be attracted to the unfamiliar words and the meanings to be interpreted. Nevertheless, I would be very much attracted in any case. He is a willing victim into her snare. Just follow his words:

When I woke up the sun was shining in my eyes

My silver spurs were gone my head felt twice its size

She took my silver spurs a dollar and a dime

And left me cravin' for more summer wineOhh-oh-oh summer wine

He gives up his former life. His future is not sad, but assured of being of loving service to her. What man would not succumb to her charms?

The U-tube link above is close to the quality of the original, which I have on a CD. If you are looking for a video, you will find it, but the singing and sounds are not as good as in the original recording. Sinatra and Hazelwood were both older when they tried to improve the original, which did not work.

You may want to listen to it more than once to really understand it.