Elephants never forget
How many loves do elephants have?
If you think about it, now we all live so much longer chances are could will spend 40 or more years with the same partner but in truth, how many of us actually do? There are so many events in life now - divorce is available to everyone and apparently, over 60% of divorces happening in marriages of the over fifties are instigated by women. The reasons are many and varied but with greater financial independence and less disapproval, women feel less constrained. Unfortunately, we may lose our partner to an accident or illness and actually, quite a lot of people reach their middle years having never committed to a long term partnership. So, where do the unwilling singles go? While some of us are quite happy on our own, many of us are not and still yearn for a loving companion but how on earth do we meet someone suitable? At work, through friends/family, by joining a club or hobbies group, at a party or just by chance. It sounds easy but in fact, it’s not which is why so many single 40, 50 & 60 somethings turn to internet dating, hoping to connect with a man or woman they’d like to share a part of their lives with.
You need to have a good attitude towards internet dating before you start because to an extent, it is a numbers game. An open mind, reasonable expectations, a sense of humour, relaxed time scale and a fairly thick skin are essential. There will be timewasters, plonkers, financial and/or sexual predators, saddos, liars, crooks and generally not very pleasant people out there amongst the majority of really nice genuine singletons. It is up to you to filter them out. You may meet several dozen people over a period and not find anyone you like but there again, you could meet the person of your dreams on your second date. Online dating involves taking a chance , as does everything in life and nothing ventured, nothing gained. Read between the lines of someone’s profile. Email them and try and get a feeling for the kind of person they are. Look through the overly optimistic impression they may give of themselves and use your experience of everyday life when assessing potential dates. Use your common sense and be flexible. You may find the partner you end up with is nothing like the person you thought you were looking for at the beginning.
So, back to elephants. Having just been to Kerela for my holidays (fantastic), I learnt the Kerelan elephant of southern India lives for about 120-130 years, so think how many partners they must get through! They don’t have the same complex courting rituals we do but they have to go through it more often! OK, so they don’t pair up for years on end but none the less, they still have to find dates, are sociable animals and have to manage without the benefit of the internet!
Posted 8th February 2010 15:17:34 by Natalie Crosland
Edited 8th February 2010 15:59:22 by Natalie Crosland