Maree’s Musings

KISS KISS KISS

As I prepare to write, October is fast approaching; however I’m going completely off the election

fever track for this month’s topic. But kissing?? 

I can assure you it’s not something that has often crossed my mind, or lips, to be honest. And quite probably for you too, we rarely stop mid-smack to reason why, especially with those spontaneous snog moments. Until now, that is.

People kiss goodnight, good morning, hello, and goodbye. It’s the first symbol of welcome – or maybe relief – to the newborn, and the final farewell gesture for the dead. A kiss sometimes lets the recipient know you share their pain. ‘Kiss and make up’ can prove helpful, while the nuptial directive ‘you may kiss the bride’ has long gone out of fashion as it’s bound to have happened before. There’s plenty of good luck examples, and the infamous Judas bad luck one which did not end well. 

Politicians (sorry, it snuck in) used to kiss babies: how that musters votes beats me; and very recently we’ve had a spate of fellow-patting of bald pates. OK, that’s not a kiss, which would be more creepy, but on the same track.

Where that kiss ends up is important as well as why. Todays’ winning sportsmen and women exchange plenty of kisses as well as the usual hugs, but lipsmacking? It seems not, as a recent scandal has shown. 

Thanks to social media, Spanish Soccer federation boss Luis Rubiales became the name on everybody’s lips when he was videoed embracing and kissing team member Jenni Hermioso during the World Cup medal ceremony. So why was this such a big deal? The Guardian 15 September [Spotlight on Spain] headline reads: ‘Rubiales quits. A victory for feminism – but questions still remain.’ The article goes on to say: ‘News that Luis Rubiales had resigned, three weeks after his unsolicited kiss and defiant refusal to step down sparked outrage around the world, was welcomed as a win for feminism’. 

SST columnist Alison Mau [10 Sept] used the word ‘forcible’, and Hermoso (although sometime later), said it was non-consensual. I saw it on telly, and she had a huge grin on her face at the time. Hardly an objection gesture. So what exactly is the issue here?

Lots of questions arise. What if the pash had ended up on Hermoso’s cheek and not her lips? Or if she’d been a man? Or Rubiales was a woman? And did he in fact plan it all along? That seems unlikely to me. Maybe he had an arousal of physical feelings brought on by the joy of success and ‘went a bit far’?

This does happen, you can’t deny it; we’ve got our hormones to blame for that.

Hopefully you’ll be relieved to learn I’ve now stopped losing sleep over this, but still retain a few nightly niggly thoughts about kissing my cat without asking before we drift off. 

Oh, and in the morning and all. I guess I’m not alone in this. Just saying …

XX

The Muse.