38 years ago, I met my soulmate.
In honor of my best friend’s birthday, I want to dedicate this love letter to the topic of soulmates.
What is a soulmate?
Does your innate and immediate response to that question conjure up an image of the perfect romantic partner? A dark, sexy, confident Mexican man with little to no baggage, excellent with finances, supportive and chivalrous, intelligent, curious, funny, healthy and fit, knows good wine, easy to be with…
Okay I’ll chill out because there I go manifesting again and my manifestations are totally not your problem.
MY vision of a soulmate, for most of my life thus far, evoked that very image (or something similar, depending on an assortment of factors including my age & current geographic location).
Love has been optimally glorified, often turning into something it’s notfor profit or advertising purposes. It’s easier to sell romance, so the concept of soulmates normally coincides with desire.
This diverts our attention from so many relationships that could actually qualify as soul connections.
My perception of love, in all its forms, has matured and solidified. I’ve slowly come to a deep realization that despite being (not unhappily!) single at 38 I do, indeed, have a soulmate and perhaps I have several. I certainly don’t feel strongly that we are limited to only one in a lifetime.
But there is someone who stands out amongst the rest. She is my kindred spirit.
A long time ago, I was dating a man whose behavior was driving me crazy. I confided in her about it and her response was “Love is supposed to be easy.” Those words have significantly changed my outlook on allrelationships: dating, friendships and family.
So when I think about my own easiest love, I always come back to her.
She is my queen and my safety net. Even when she’s tugging on my shirt sleeve at an intersection, forcing me back onto the sidewalk to wait for a red light even though NO CARS ARE COMING and it’s COMPLETELY safe to cross the street, I still find it so effortless to love her.
She’s the first opinion I grasp for when buying a new rug. She’s the first call I make when I need health advice. She’s my “anatomy google”, meaning I regularly utilize her years working in physical therapy to my own advantage when a yoga student complains of a specific pain or ailment. She’s the one I tell all of my wildest dreams to, because no matter how grand or ridiculous they sound, I know she will support me.
I would do anything for her, and I’m pretty sure she would do anything for me.
If that’s not a soulmate, what is?
Do I still want to marry that sexy Mexican man? Hell yes.
But if I don’t, at least I know I was one of the lucky ones who spent my life alongside a creative and inspiring woman that is my absolute soulmate, through and through.
So with that being said…
Happy Birthday to my beautiful Mother.
Thank you for choosing me.
With love,
Bethany
