Kissing, stroking and wild embraces are common enough,
and now the quiet, romantic gesture of holding hands in public is a
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final frontier for many young couples in the West-even though,
traditionally it was a first step towards intimacy. Power couples on
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the world stage have taken up handholding as a sign of equality
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and commitment. The political figures and their wives are often
snapped hand-in-hand.
That very fact-which it"s a simple but powerful statement of
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commitment-is exact what deters many young people from
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linking hands. There is no public display of affection intimate
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between two people than handholding, writes New York bachelor
Jozen, on his blog. "Holding hands is the ultimate sign that two
people are not only together, also happily so. Couples kiss madly,
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hug madly. But hold hands madly Oh no, they don"t do that."
Public Display of Affection is so common and varied that it"s
earned its own acronym, the PDA. A lot of young people aren"t
thinking about the long term when they date with someone:
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"Kissing and touching are fueled by passion and don"t necessarily
mean people plan to be together forever. But a couple quietly
holding hands shows something deeper." In the fast paced, constantly
changing world of youth where everything is permitted, but something
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is certain, people have time for passion but are scary
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of the commitment of love.