Do you believe in soul mates? Do you believe in the concept that there is maybe one person, somewhere in the world, who is exactly, perfectly suited for you, and you for them? Do you believe in the magic and mystery of a a match made in heaven, of ever finding your counterpart and true companion for life and even beyond, the ultimate hook up, your soul mate? Many people do, especially today in our love obsessed, technologically blessed society….

Do you really believe that somewhere out there there is that one special person in the world who can exactly match you in a very special relationship, a love that literally transcends space and time?….That you can find that one person who has the same special unique blend of energy and outlook on life that you do, the other half of you that complete you and makes you whole?

Most people spend their whole lives trying to find, identify and hopefully connect in a blissful union of equals, that one special person, two halves that together make a whole person….Many people succeed…….

This is admittedly a VERY romantic and fairly new concept that did not exist in most people’s minds even a few generations ago, but seems to be gaining traction and enjoying a popularity and a life of it’s own more and more every day, especially among young couples today…

Fueled by the internet dating scene, which with a few keystrokes can open up a seemingly unlimited pool of possible matches there are suddenly thousands of more potential mates available than any other generation has ever had access to… We have never been so aware of and awash in the sea of possibilities…

This is an option that our parents generation never had…It is a very, very romantic notion, and in the past, once we got through the medieval practice of arranged marriages, most people just settled for the first potential mate they ran into on a regular basis….It has always been a source of endless fascination to me to ask couples how they first met, how their chance encounter changed their lives forever…

Almost invariably, the answer would be that they met in high school, or college, maybe somewhere in the vast pool of potential mates that exist in the otherwise neutral zone of work world, a work friend that they suddenly feel a special affinity for, maybe from working long hours on a special project late into the night, sharing ideas, insights and energy and suddenly getting that FLASH of recognition about your work mate that inflames the spirit and inspires the soul……And wondering if they feel the same bond with you!

Often meeting your potential mate is as mundane as sheer physical proximity, for example, it may be as simple as continuously bumping into your next door neighbor, the proverbial “girl next door” you have grown up with together all your life….Even more popular is the notion that by cruising singles bars you will find that perfect person for you, somebody you meet in a bar, maybe the same bar night after night…You hang out, you hook up and you eventually pair off into a couple!

Many people tell me they are “set up” by friends of theirs, in other words, they let their friends pick out their potential mates, and they meet at parties or social events, museum openings, art galleries, the latest trendy restaurants or night clubs, dancing venues, the opera or a rock concert, someplace where it is obvious that they have at least have some common interests…. But wherever it is, wherever you meet that “perfect stranger,” the “urge to merge” is a very strong and innate human emotion….

But this current generation, this particular time span we are all living in, has expanded our potential pool of likely romantic matches exponentially….Just look at all the match making companies that are thriving today, reputable companies like E. Harmony, Match.com, Christian Mingle.com, Zoosk, (this is a new one to me, but apparently quite popular with Face book regulars), Perfect Match, Plenty of Fish, the lists of potential matches has never been greater than today!
There are literally hundreds of them and they cater to all different tastes, like Adult Friend Finders or ethnic groups such as Asian Dating.com, Black People Meet.com, Jewish Matchmakers, Latino People Meet, Gay and Lesbian matchmaker sites, the lists of matchmaking agencies are only matched by the number of people patronizing them….

All of them promise to find, identify and match you up with your exact counterpart , with whom you can forge a romantic bond of love, intimacy and shared dreams, hopes and expectations that will inevitably lead to true happiness for both of you….

It is like you are driven by this gnawing compulsion that yes, there is another part of you, your missing half, somewhere out there, and that if you can only find them you will be able to merge into a blissful relationship that will guarantee you lifelong and perhaps even eternal happiness….

So with this seemingly endless pool of potential mates now available to us, and with the computer’s ability to narrow down and identify potential matches, is it really so hard to imagine that somewhere there exists a perfect match for you?

I personally think the concept of a soul mate is a very valid and real possibility, and I sincerely hope that you find the elusive “one” who will match you in all the complementary ways that you crave and desire and seek, that you too will someday find your soul mate, that special someone who completes you, your missing half….I realize it is a very romantic notion but then again, nothing ventured, nothing gained, and always remember the old saying:

“The saddest words, on tongue or pen, are these few words, what might have been”…