My first contact with Literature happened through Stefan Zweig.
This actually made a lot of sense, as his writing is within reach for neophytes : fine tuned but accessible, with psychological acuity but not too mental and nurturing for the imagination.At this age, it seems that emotional (and therefore artistic) impressions have the ability to leave their traces for very long, as if carved in a soft material. Moreover, the "short story" format is also suitable for the specific kind of teenager's impatience.

At this age, it seems that emotional (and therefore artistic) impressions have the ability to leave their traces for very long, as if carved in a soft material.
That's how I still have vivid memories about his "Letter from an unknown woman", "The royal game" of course, and full scale novels like "Confusion" and "Beware of Pity".

You can find, for instance, the "Letter from an unknown woman" at the following links :

• In French :  https://www.ebooksgratuits.com/details.php?book=2322
• In English : https://www.prosperosisle.org/spip.php?article958
• Original version in German : https://www.prosperosisle.org/spip.php?article958#Below2

So when i got my hands on a book by Zweig, in a flea market, containing short stories I hadn't read yet, I didn't think twice.
You know, one has to seize opportunities, when given the chance, right ?

One of those short stories specifically appealed to me : "The woman and the countryside".

In spite of its title, which wouldn't sell well, I suppose, in today's world, it was neither about male gaze , nor about evanescent contemplation… Without revealing too much of the story (which text I could not find copyright free online in English ; here is the original, in German and here is the French version), it was mainly about an ambiance, of an almost electrical nature (waiting for the storm to begin, in the mist of a hot summer in the Alps) and, of course, as in any good romantic story (since Faust) about a failure (or Freudian slip).
All in all, a first rate story, although marked by the spirit of a time (very XIXthesque, even if published in the 1930s), but that also has its own value.

SPOILER : As I was looking for the text, I fell upon a pretty good animation movie : the woman and the coutryside, by Adrienne Zeidler.
It's fine, in terms of atmosphere and stylization. Yet, the romance thing is somewhat misplaced as it gets sexual in a quite straightforward way… In the book, it's far more finely put. It might tend towards a certain kind of erotism, but not much farther than that, and it was actually fine, as the imagination is already ignited and does the real job.

To be honest, this romanticism has been somewhat misleading in my youth.
Indeed, after a few readings of the kind (and movies as well), I thought that things were indeed running this way : unannounced encounters, out of ordinary atmospheres, intense and elusive love…
Well, the worst is probably not so much to think that it might be possible (actually, I truly lived it… and had to cope with quite a few disappointments), but rather the reaction, afterwards, towards this all - when we consider later on, that all of it was full of shit.
Indeed, after 15 or 20 years, I finally understood how coldly I could look at the world and human relations - probably as a way of self preservation - in other words : the extreme opposite of romanticism ! And that was even worse than sadness ; it felt like an icy gloom (hopefully, I still had the Theater arts to warm me up…)

Today, I strongly believe that romanticism is, more than anything, a matter of outlook and attitude : there's nothing impartial nor neutral, quite the oppositive, as it's seems to be mainly about perceptions and overtures to surrounding events.
As a matter of fact, this very principle applies particularly well to at least 3 short stories of the book : "The woman and the countryside" (excuse and impulsion of this post), but also "Unexpected acquaintance with a craft", or "The invisible collection". Without getting into details about these stories, we're witnessing unpredictable encounters and observations of life going its bizarre ways. The narrator is systematically placed in a unexpected situation and appreciates it, by opening himself to it, letting himself get touched.
In other words, he fully places himself in a similar position that Hartmut Rosa describes in his essay Resonance (I'll do a post about this very important book). Far from fleeing such situations, the narrator longs for them and receives a very vivid reward out of that

A "romantic" life is possible, if we are keen on appreciating it.
It is a bit like the philosophy of "abundance", which, simply put, states that our world is not one of scarcity. It might actually be full of abundance, on every level (affective, material, financial…), at the main condition of learning to be available, learning to receive and to give back. It's really about opening our eyes, and see all the beauty around us, opening one's heart, spirit or soul (or anything that speaks to you) and finally becoming ourselves beautiful as well.
Of course, I've got a lot to learn about it (maybe even more than most people, considering the distortion I went through with my scientific education, promoting a cold rationalization), but some life experiences tell me that I could be, finally, on a promising path.

Yes, there were a lot of unexpected cues…
I remember some situations, which really feed this conception.

For instance, I still see five encounters I had while sitting in a train. Only 5 in a dozen years - how many have I missed ! But, as for those ones, I still fully appreciate them to this very day.
They'd be worth specific posts (and far more), but for the time being, let's just state that they caught me unprepared, through persons who were totally different than myself, and who simply needed to talk to somebody. A those times, I had the foresight to turn off my computer, close it, and let myself available. I listened to these persons, who gave me their personal stories and drama - and I've learned more in those couple of hours, than in years.
Maybe such encounters can only happen when unexpected, with total strangers ? At least, what is sure is this : being open to such possibilities and exchanges, with an open heart to the unknown, one can only expand…

A few notes :

• You can find a few stories by Zweig at the link : https://www.prosperosisle.org/spip.php?rubrique112
• A great blog, which I found while preparing this post : https://vishytheknight.wordpress.com/2018/11/20/book-review-the-collected-stories-of-stefan-zweig/