But don't be in a hurry! As in all matters pertaining to love, don't hurry the process of kissing. A kiss is too rapturous a thing to be enjoyed for the moment and the moment only. Linger longer on her lips than you have ever lingered before. Forget time. Forget everything but the kiss in which you are in the midst of. Don't be like that bashful young lover who, after a sweet, long kiss, drew his lips away from the lips of his charmer. Immediately, She burst out into tears.
"What's the matter?" he asked solicitously.
"You don't love me I" she said between sobs.
"But I do!"
"Then why did you draw your lips away?"
"I couldn't breathe," he said naively.
Breathe? Who wants to breathe, who even wants to think of breathing in the middle of an impassioned kiss? Breathe through your nose if you have to breathe. But kiss, keep on kissing, as long as there! Is one minim of breath in you. Kiss, as Byron said we should kiss, with the "long, long kiss of youth and love." Recently, in Chicago, there was held a marathon kissing contest to determine Which couple could hold their kiss the longest without being forced to separate. One pair was able to hold their kiss for fifteen hours. Think of that! Fifteen hours. And yet the naive lad stopped kissing because be couldn't breathe.
Elizabeth Barrett Browning must have spent many an ecstatic night of kissing with the poet, Robert Browning, if we are to judge from an excerpt from her "Aurora Leigh," in which she described a kiss as being "As long and silent as the ecstatic night."
Another poet, unknown, but certainly one who knew whereof he speaks, wrote the following poem which deserves to be quoted in its entirety.
Oh, that a joy so soon should waste,
Or so sweet a bliss as a kiss
Might not forever last!
So sugared, so melting, -so delicious.
The dew that lies on roses,
When the morn herself discloses,
Is not so precious.
Oh, rather than I would it smother
Were I to taste such another.
It. should be my wishing
That I might die kissing.
At this point, it should be explained that the lips are not the only part of the mouth which should be joined in kissing. Every lover is a glutton. He wants everything that is part of his sweetheart, everything. He doesn't want to miss a single iota of her "million-pleasured joys" as Keats once wrote of them. That is why, when kissing, there should be as many contacts, bodily contacts, as is possible.
Snuggle up closely together. Feel the warm touch of each other's bodies. Be so close that the rise and fall of each other's bosoms is felt by one another. Get next to each other.
"Snuggle Up Closely Together"
And, this same thing applies to the mouth in kissing. Don't be afraid to kiss with more than your lips. After your lips have been glued together for some time, open them slightly. Then put the tip of your tongue out so that you can feel the smooth surface of your kissee's teeth. This will be a signal for her to respond in kind. If she is wholly in accord with you, if she is, truly, your real love-mate, then you will notice that she, too, has opened her lips slightly and that., soon, her teeth will be parted. Then, if she is all that she should be, she should project the tip of her tongue so that it meets with the tip of yours.
Heaven will be in that union!
Lava will run through your veins instead of blood. Your breath will come in short gasps. There will rise up in you an Overpowering, overwhelming surge of emotion such as you have never before experienced. If you are a man, you will clutch the shoulders of your loved one and sense a shudder course through you that makes you pant. If you are a woman, and being kissed, you will feel a strange languor passing through your limbs, you-r entire body. A shudder will go through you. You will moan in the delicious transports of love. And, in all probabilities, you will go faint because the blood in your veins will be rushing furiously into your entire system and away from your head. Thus, you will be unable to think any longer. You will only be able to feel, td feel the most exquisite of pleasures that it has been your lot to feel.
THE FRENCH "SOUL" KISS
But don't stop at this.
Surely, there is more to your tongue than merely its tip. Probe further. Go deeper. Gently caress ,each other's tongues. For, in doing this, you are merging your souls. That is why this kiss was called the "soul" kiss by the French who were said to be the first people to have perfected it.. The French have always been a liberal minded people. And, it is because of the fact that they dropped Puritanism many years ago, that they were able to. perfect themselves in the art of love and, particularly, in the art of kissing. Learn from the French.
Learn also from the Old Romans , especially Catullus, whose love poems to Lesbia have lived through the ages because of the sincerity of his passion and the genius of his ability to express his emotions in the form of beautiful poetry. For it was Catullus who wrote:
"Then to those kisses add a hundred more,
A thousand to that hundred so, kiss on!
To make that thousand up to a million;
Treble this million, and when that is done,
Let's kiss afresh, as when we first begun."
Kisses cost nothing. So kiss on. There is one thing that you cannot. take away from people and that is the ability to make love to each other. Despite the fact that the world suffered from a long depression, people continued to get married and they continued to have children. In fact, according to recently released figures, there were, more children born during the depression than there had been in good times. This means that, although married people did not have money, they still had themselves. They still had love. They still had the ability to kiss as they pleased and when they pleased and as often as theypleased.
Another poet asks:
What is a kiss? alack, at worst,
A-single drop to quench a thirst,
Tho oft it proves in happier hour,
The first sweet drop of one long shower.
Because kisses cost nothing.
So kiss on. Keep on kissing.
Rare old Ben Jonson realized this when he wrote that, if he had one wish, it would be that he could die kissing. But it is not only the robust and lusty poets, like Ben Jonson, who are gluttons for kisses. There has been attributed to John Ruskin, an old fogy of a philosopher if ever there was one, a request from him to a young lady friend of his that she "kiss him not sometimes but continually." Still another poet wrote:
Kisses told by hundreds o'er;
Thousands told by thousands more.
Millions, countless millions then
Told by millions o'er again;
Countless as the drops that glide
In the ocean's billowy tide,
Countless as yon orbs of light
Spangled o'er the vault of night
I'll with ceaseless love bestow
On those cheeks of crimson glow,
On those lips so gently swelling,
On those eyes such fond tales telling.
PUT VARIETY INTO YOUR KISSES
It is with the last few lines of this poem that our next subject for discussion concerns itself. As was mentioned before, the true lover is not satisfied with only one or two contacts. He wants n6thing to be held from him. It is for that reason that, when kissing a girl, after. you have given sufficient time to the kissing of her lips, you should vary your kissing by diverting your zeal to other portions of her face. Robert Herrick, who wrote many beautiful love lyrics in his day, has a poem which ideally synthesizes this idea of varied kisses. In it he says:
It isn't creature born and bred
Between the lips all cherry-red;
It is an active flame that flies
First to the babies of the eyes;
Then to the cheek, the chin and ear;
It frisks and flies-now here, now there-
'Tis now far off, and then 'tis near;
Here and there and everywhere.
Let us say that you have revelled in a sweet, long kiss. Suddenly, you see your loved one's eyes close as though in a moment of weariness. Gently detach your lips from her's and raise them up to her closed eyelids. Drop a kisslet first on one eyelid and then on the other. Feel the rolling orb quiver under your lips. Then , when you have done this, run your lips down along the line of her nose, stopping at odd times to purse them into a tiny kiss. When you reach the wrinkle of her nostrils, bury your lips deeply into the curve and kiss little niblets into first one and then the other. If her eyes still are closed, repeat the process.
But return to the lips.
Never forget this important injunction, "Return to the lips," for they can never become satiated with love's ardent kisses. The little kisses that you have deposited on her eyes and her nose serve only to vary the Menu of love. They are but spice to the course of love's banquet which should always be the "lip kiss."
THE VACUUM KISS
This time, when your eager lips have been deposited on the eager lips of the girl, try to vary the kiss. For instance' instead of using the soul kiss, try what is known as the "vacuum kiss." Here you start off by first opening your mouth a. trifle just after you have been resting peacefully with closed lips. Indicate to your partner, by brushing her teeth with the tip of your tongue, that you wish for her to do likewise. The moment she responds, instead of caressing her mouth, suck inward as though you were trying to draw out the innards of an orange. If she knows of this kiss variations your maid will act in the same way and withdraw the air from your mouth. In this fashion, in a very short while, the, air will have been entirely drawn out of your mouths. Your lips will adhere so tightly that there will almost be pain, instead of pleasure. But it will be the sort of pain that is highly pleasurable. That may sound odd but, nevertheless, it is a fact. Pain becomes so excruciating as to become pleasure. This subject will be gone into very shortly in regard to what is known as the "bite kiss." But, at present let I us continue with the "vacuum
kiss." This kiss must, of necessity, last a comparatively short time. There is tog rill4ch strain on
the delicate mouth tissues and the muscles tire very easily. It is .for that reason that this kiss should be shortened. However, there is a special technique to be used to terminating it. When you decide that you have had enough of it, don't suddenly tear your mouth away. At least, don't do it if there are other people present in the house. For, they will become startled by the sound of a loud report which will result if you act suddenly. Any vacuum when suddenly opened to air gives off a loud popping noise. The procedure is simply to open first a comer of your mouth. You will hear a faint hissing sound when this is done. Immediately, you will find the pressure in your mouth lessen. The muscles will relax. And a delicious sense of torpor will creep over your entire body, giving it a lassitude that is almost beatific.
But that is not all.
To every large dinner, there is always added a dessert or a lagniappe which is a toppingoff tid-bit of the evening. The same should apply to the "vacuum kiss." The minute you release Your lips, lift them' away from the tired lips of your lover. Then, without wasting a minute's time, gently, delicately, softly, sensitively, oh so lightly, lower your pursed lips and place a tiny little kiss into the almost bruised lips of the girl. It is this little act of sympathy and condolence that makes the tie between you all the more firm. It tells the girl that you know how she feels and that you sympathize with her. While resting from the joy-laden ardors of such a kiss, a few more variations are permissible and advisable. There should never be a let-down in a kissing session. Every moment must be filled with kisses. But they do not have to be kisses of the mouth. There are other kisses which, although they are not as satisfying as the lip kisses, still serve to keep the blood burning.
THE "SPIRITUAL" KISS
For instance, there can be kisses exchanged merely in intense glances. A sort of "spiritual kiss." can pass between the adoring eyes of a pair of lovers. The hot blooded Latin races know the power of such kisses. Their fiery temperaments are ever questing for new delights, for variations, for delightful and artful ways of adding to the pleasure of love. There is a poem extant written by a young Spanish poet to his sloe-eyed, raven-tressed senorita. No doubt it was sung by him under her balcony while the romantic moon streamed down liquid beams. But the poem quite amply describes this point of kissing with things other than your lips. Then she kisses with her eyelids, Kisses with her arching eye-brows, With her soft cheek softly rubbing,
With her chin and hands and fingers,
All the frame of Manuela,
All her blood and all her spirit,
All melt down to burning kisses.
There, Perhaps fifteen feet away from him, was the light of her love. Yet, by means of her eyes, she was able to kiss him so that their love continued to flower.
THE EYELASH KISS
A variation of this eye kiss can be practiced as a tender diversion. After an intense period of "soul or "vacuum kissing" has been indulged in and both lovers lie back tiredly, looking into each other's eyes , the-young man should lean over the face of the girl. But, instead of implanting his lips on hers, he should bring his cheek into direct contact with her cheek again. Then, when this is done, he should lower his eyelash so that they enmesh with the eyelash of his partner. This, of course, is done one eye at a time. And when the enmeshing process is complete, each should gently raise and lower his or her eyelids. The contact of the hair of the eyelash is one that is almost indescribable. Suffice it to say, it is a charming bypath in the meadows of love that is pleasant, provocative and yet not exhausting.
THE "PAIN" KISS
A while back, mention was made of the "Pain kiss." It is with this seemingly paradoxical pleasure that we shall deal with now. First of all, it is necessary to explain that, although an act can be painful, it can still be pleasurable. The explanation is merely another indication of the variability of human nature. To begin, there are some people who derive an extreme pleasure out of being whipped or burned or beaten. There is no rational explanation for this strange, delight. The fact remains that they react pleasurably to pain. These people are called masochists. Similarly, there are other people who derive the same pleasure out of being the ones who inflict pain or perform the beating. Their abnormality, too, is inexplicable. They are called sadists. The point is this: these people have these strange desires in extremes. But normal people have similar desires but they are not so strong. They are present only in minute degrees. That is why some of us deliberately uncover ourselves in cold weather or continue to pick at a sore tooth although the act pains us. It is for this reason that most of us are able to derive pleasure from the "pain kiss."
The "pain kiss" is simply a tiny bite, a love nip. Catullus, who knew his kissing, if we are to judge from the many poems he left on the subject, once wrote:
Whom wilt thou for thy lover choose?
Whose shall they call thee, false one, whose?
Who shall thy darted kisses sip,
While thy keen love-bites scar his lip?
THE "NIP" KISS
Horace, another Roman, whose kissing proclivities have come down through the ages because of his love poems, also wrote something about the "nip-kiss" when he said:
Or on thy lips, the fierce, fond boy
Marks with his teeth the furious joy.
So you see, it is perfectly normal people, if you can call poets normal people, who indulge in the "pain kiss" and derive intense pleasure from it. Punishment, after all, can be more than painful. For instance, in another poem, a poet says:
And if she dared her lips to pout,
Like many pert young misses,
I'd wind my arms her waist about
And punish her with kisses.
Naturally, in the "nip-kiss" the kisser is not supposed to open his mouth like the maw of a lion. and then sink his fangs into the delicate-flesh of the kissee. Ridiculous! The procedure is the same as the ordinary kiss except that, instead of closing your lips with the kiss, you leave them slightly. open and, as though you were going to nibble on a delicious tid-bit, take a playful nip into either the nape of the neck, the cheek or the lips. just a nip is enough. And the resultant pleasure, I assure you, will more than compensate for the slight inconvenience of pain.
Now there might be some of you who may wonder why such kissing subterfuges and substitutes are necessary. It is only that man is a questing animal. He is never satisfied with the ordinary and commonplace because the commonplace, after a time, becomes very boring. Not that I mean to infer that the usual "lip-kiss" is commonplace.. Absolutely not. The "lip-kiss," as I have mentioned before, is the piece de resistance, the main course in the "banquet of love" as the poet, Qvid, called it. But imagine a meal in which there were seven courses of filet mignon or seven courses of lobster. You'd get sick and tired of a tender filet after the third course, wouldn't you? And after the second lobster, you wouldn't be able to look a lobster in the eye, that is, providing a lobster has eyes. So you see why it is that if the lip-kiss were indulged in exclusively, you would reach a point where it would lose all of its rapturous savor.
VARIATION, KISSES ARE THE SPICE OF LOVE
A variation 6f the "lip-kiss" can be performed very nicely. Instead of pressing the lips together at one spot, start at one corner of the mouth and brush your closed lips across the entire mouth. A variation of this, in turn, is to part your lips slightly and, with the tip of your tongue in the groove that separates the two lips, brush your lips from side to side. Naturally, .additional variations to this last variation suggest themselves immediately to the aware practitioner of the kiss. In fact, to such a person there should come up hundreds of other variations to titillate and titivate the senses. One such variation suggests itself. Technically, it is not exactly a variation but simply a variation in the technique of the ordinary "lip-kiss." It employs the use of the ".delayed action" in its execution. The old story of the fox and the grapes which were tantalizingly dangled over his head is the foundation for the method. Simply, the procedure is this: just before lowering your lips for the kiss, instead of planting the kiss, draw your head back
again. Then, hold your lips in readiness but do not-kiss. Hold this position for as long as possible the while you smile tantalizingly into the eyes of the girl. Finally, when both you and she can stand the suspense no longer, then lower your lips, Slowly, as slowly as you possibly can, and imprint the seal of-love onto the avid mouth of your loved one. After that, the technique calls for no specific action. Kissing, like loving, is instinctive.
