In our last newsletter, we invited you, the experts, to tell us about your reactions to the challenges of finding love in the midst of this Pandemic that has touched the lives of each of us.
We asked you to teach us about how you feel; what you do to ensure that relationships are created or fostered; and how you are coping with the isolation that prevents all of us from hugging friends and family. Are you meeting other singles mostly online or also offline and maintaining social distance?
Your responses have been inspiring and heartwarming. From the sheer number of those of you who wrote to us, we could see that we hit a nerve. There is, unmistakenly, a deep desire to discuss dating and meeting new people under constrained and anxiety-filled conditions. Analyzing your thoughts, feelings, strategies, fears, and hopes, we can reasonably create two basic dimensions into which they fall: LONGING AND SELF-ASSESSMENT.
Every communication from you included the painful experience of isolation from other people. No chance to hug a loved one, a child or grandchild, or a dear friend. And then, sometimes, you shared the unspeakable pain of losing a loved one with no opportunity to say goodby except on a phone or iPad.
This longing, this unrequited human desire and need for human connection touched everyone, and only the promise that the arrival of the new vaccines could provide some relief stirred some hope of a light at the end of the tunnel.
As a result, we found that this need was a driving force for many of you to begin the commitment to use the time and technology to explore potential new relationships online in a dedicated fashion.
A complimentary driving force for many of you was that the isolation and increased time alone, not only “socially distanced” but also “existentially distanced,” provided ample opportunity for self-reflection. The constant presence of Covid on the news and on the lips of everyone created an atmosphere of facing mortality on a daily basis. A common theme we heard was something to the effect of, “I realize that I may not have that much time left and I now see more clearly that I am the kind of person who needs to be in a relationship with someone I can love.”
Many of our clients redoubled their efforts to find someone special, and we also received many more inquiries from new (potential) clients who had made up their minds to move forward with their resolve to find a partner.
We send our thanks to each and every one of you who wrote to us and permitted a glimpse into your thoughts and hearts. We encourage you to take advantage of the human spirit you possess to overcome these difficult and painful times.