Soul Mates

So, last night over a few drinks and good company I found myself deep in the neverending debate about the existence of soul mates. Do they exist and if so, who are they? The pop culture definition of soul mates is one of romance...your one and only, we were meant to be, the Romeo and Juliet effect. Most people never stop to truly understand what a soul mate is, so the term is used loosely without much meaning. It's also typically used to define just 2 people in this world who are meant to coincide, who were made for each other, just those 2. My friend included has fallen into this cultural stereotype. And frankly, I have to respectfully disagree.

I don't believe at all in soul mates the way the masses define the term....that there's only one person out there for you that was created for you. I mean, really, if this were the case, we'd all be walking around lonely and depressed because with almost 7 billion people on the planet, the chances of us running into our one and only soul mate are slim to none....basically never gonna happen!!

But, it's not that I don't believe in soul mates, because I do. I just think of them differently. I believe that all of us have an abudance of soul mates out there. I also believe that the term "soul mate" does not have to refer to a romantic partner or spouse. A soul mate could be a friend, a parent or even someone you barely know. To me, a soul mate is someone that you connect with, have a strong sense of familiarity or perhaps even someone you feel a strong affinity for. Let's face it, we don't "connect" with everyone. So think of those individuals in your life or in your past that you felt instantly connected to. I can think of a few in my life and when I think of these people, I have a strong feeling of familiarity, comfort and connection. It's almost hard to describe and in each case these feelings came quickly, if not instantly. Those are my soul mates. To me, a soul mate could be anywhere at anytime.

So, if you're out searching for your one and only, maybe you should stop, slow down and pay attention to all the people already around you.