'Carrying a Torch for Someone' Can Hurt A Lot
2021-02-14
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1And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English.
2February 14 is Valentine's Day in the United States!
3For many people, it is a romantic day.
4It's the day to show your love for that special someone in your life, usually a boyfriend, girlfriend, husband or wife.
5Of course, you should do that every day.
6But on Valentine's Day there is a special pressure to do so with a gift.
7Popular gifts for this holiday include flowers, candy and a card or maybe a nice dinner out in a restaurant.
8Some people use Valentine's Day to declare their love for someone.
9Just be careful.
10A declaration of love is a serious move.
11And, if the person you love is also a friend, you may put your friendship at risk.
12There is no turning back once you say the words, "I love you."
13In other words, there is no putting that genie back in the bottle.
14Or maybe it happens the other way around for you.
15Maybe Valentine's Day is the day you find out that you have a secret admirer.
16That happened to me once and it was very awkward.
17One Valentine's Day many years ago, an old flame of mine showed up at my door unexpectedly, out of the blue.
18In one hand he had chocolates, in the other some beautiful flowers.
19He told me that he never stopped thinking of me and that he still loved me.
20I was shocked.
21I had not seen him in over a year.
22Then my shock turned to pity because I did not feel the same way.
23While he had carried a torch for me for all those months, I had gotten over him a long time ago.
24Still, I invited him in for a cup of tea.
25After all, he had just flown into town.
26When I told him that I did not feel the same way, he did not waste a minute.
27He turned to my roommate, handed her the flowers and asked, "What about you?"
28Both of us shouted the same thing.
29"Get out!"
30So, I guess he wasn't carrying a torch for me after all.
31In British English, a torch is a simple flashlight.
32But in the U.S., a torch is fire, or a flame, on a stick.
33If you say you carry a torch for someone, you mean you are carrying a flaming love for them in your heart.
34But usually, you secretly love them from a distance. And often, those strong feelings are not returned.
35We have a special way to describe this type of heartbreak - unrequited love.
36That is an advanced way of saying unreturned love -- which we don't really say.
37I like to describe unrequited love as love traveling in one direction down a dark, lonely, dead-end street, going nowhere.
38People started using the idiom "to carry a torch for someone" in the early 1900s.
39Around the same time, "torch song" and "torch singer" also became common terms.
40Many of us have carried a torch for someone.
41That is why torch songs became common.
42Baby, baby, baby!
43Baby, baby, baby!
44Give me love,
45Come back to me,
46Come back to me ...
47Torch singers sound as if they are filled with pain as the unrequited flame of love burns deeply inside them.
48Torch songs are filled with yearning -- wishing and hoping with all your heart that the person you love will love you back.
49And that is all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories.
50Until next time... I'm Anna Matteo.
1And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English. 2February 14 is Valentine's Day in the United States! 3For many people, it is a romantic day. It's the day to show your love for that special someone in your life, usually a boyfriend, girlfriend, husband or wife. 4Of course, you should do that every day. But on Valentine's Day there is a special pressure to do so with a gift. Popular gifts for this holiday include flowers, candy and a card or maybe a nice dinner out in a restaurant. 5Some people use Valentine's Day to declare their love for someone. Just be careful. A declaration of love is a serious move. And, if the person you love is also a friend, you may put your friendship at risk. There is no turning back once you say the words, "I love you." In other words, there is no putting that genie back in the bottle. 6Or maybe it happens the other way around for you. Maybe Valentine's Day is the day you find out that you have a secret admirer. That happened to me once and it was very awkward. 7One Valentine's Day many years ago, an old flame of mine showed up at my door unexpectedly, out of the blue. In one hand he had chocolates, in the other some beautiful flowers. He told me that he never stopped thinking of me and that he still loved me. I was shocked. I had not seen him in over a year. Then my shock turned to pity because I did not feel the same way. While he had carried a torch for me for all those months, I had gotten over him a long time ago. 8Still, I invited him in for a cup of tea. After all, he had just flown into town. When I told him that I did not feel the same way, he did not waste a minute. He turned to my roommate, handed her the flowers and asked, "What about you?" 9Both of us shouted the same thing. 10"Get out!" 11So, I guess he wasn't carrying a torch for me after all. 12British "torch" not the same as American "torch" 13In British English, a torch is a simple flashlight. But in the U.S., a torch is fire, or a flame, on a stick. If you say you carry a torch for someone, you mean you are carrying a flaming love for them in your heart. But usually, you secretly love them from a distance. And often, those strong feelings are not returned. 14We have a special way to describe this type of heartbreak - unrequited love. That is an advanced way of saying unreturned love -- which we don't really say. I like to describe unrequited love as love traveling in one direction down a dark, lonely, dead-end street, going nowhere. 15Carry a torch 16People started using the idiom "to carry a torch for someone" in the early 1900s. Around the same time, "torch song" and "torch singer" also became common terms. Many of us have carried a torch for someone. That is why torch songs became common. 17Baby, baby, baby! 18Baby, baby, baby! 19Give me love, 20Come back to me, 21Come back to me ... 22Torch singers sound as if they are filled with pain as the unrequited flame of love burns deeply inside them. Torch songs are filled with yearning -- wishing and hoping with all your heart that the person you love will love you back. 23And that is all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories. 24Until next time... I'm Anna Matteo. 25Anna Matteo wrote this story for VOA Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. 26________________________________________________________________ 27Words in This Story 28romantic - adj. of, relating to, or involving love between two people 29declare - v. to say or state (something) in an official or public way : to say (something) in a strong and confident way 30put the genie back in the bottle - phrase Try to suppress something that has already been revealed or done 31secret admirer - n. someone who shows that he or she thinks highly of a person (as by sending flowers) but keeps his or her identity a secret from that person 32awkward - adj. likely to embarrass 33old flame - n. a former lover 34pity - n. sympathetic sorrow for one suffering, distressed, or unhappy 35carried a torch - phrase : To be in love with someone, especially secretly and/or unrequitedly.