I have a soul mate (so I believe) and it has nothing to do with romance or the carnal. We met through a keep fit class and in a short time found we have a very deep affinity in our attitudes and actions and are mutually supportive; effectively each other's confidantes. We've both mentioned this now.

I had a bit of a worry about saying what I thought but then sensed it would be a test: if it put up a barrier or seemed like an intrusion to the "mate" then my belief would be false. So I bit the bullet and blurted and the girl said "Yes, I know."

There are too many instances that hint we're spot on. Just to mention one - we chose the same Christmas card for each other and they crossed in the post.

So I get around a bit but wasn't actually looking for one. Surprised me that nothing came up in the local esoteric shop that I've been known to haunt on slack days! I've had a couple of guys claiming to be soul mates but their motives weren't exactly honest and were probably carried away by needing romance and trying to get me to bed. It helped that I'm highly suspicious of "spiritual" approaches that aim to intrude on others' spiritual path at a level beyond discussion and discovery. When someone comes up and after ten minutes says I think you're my soul mate there's bound to be doubt. To me it's about acts and attitudes, deep levels of trust.

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