Media always emphasizes that to be complete you have to find your romantic soulmate. The movie always ends with the girl and guy falling in love and living happily ever after and that is typically what everyone takes away from the movie. I typically do this as well -- I love the idea of having one special person who is the other half of me, but I have come to realize that there isn’t just one other person for me. I am here to talk about the soulmates that you may not think about or know about.

Platonic Soulmate

This is the friend who is basically you, just in a different body, and usually you are them as well. You have no romantic attraction to this person but you love them deeply. They are the one you turn to when you need advice, or just to hang out. You can lay in silence for hours with no discomfort, and even when you are not with them 24/7 or stop talking for months, things always pick right back up where they left off when you are together again. You never feel alone with them and can tell them anything and everything without being judged. Now, I am not saying your significant other cannot be your best friend as well, but a platonic soulmate is someone you connect with whom you are not sexually attracted to. These are so important because they teach you how to love yourself and what kind of love you deserve without any feelings of obligation to be together all the time or do sexual things that might not be something you desire.

Family Soulmate

In every family, you are bound to be closer to one person more than others. For me, my youngest brother is my family soulmate. He is like a clone of me, we play off each other’s smart mouths and while sometimes I would like to lock him in a closet, I miss him more than anything when I am gone. This soulmate is that member you gravitate towards more than anyone else and in turn, you guys tend to mirror each other. Even if you have a “broken” family there always seems to a family member or figure who you tend to gravitate towards and connect with.

Fur baby Soulmate

A soulmate does not have to be a human. Sometimes you connect with something just on a level that does not need talking. Some people do not ever want to have kids or cannot have kids and they find a connection with an animal. I know many pet owners call themselves moms/dads of their pets and they find a connection with them that is so strong it does not matter that their “kids” are not human. Sometimes feeling the unconditional love from something that knows nothing but to love you is what you might need in life.

Now I am not saying that you should stop looking or hoping to find a romantic soulmate to spend your life with, but you should not let the thought of finding them consume you. Grey’s Anatomy hits on the idea that you get more than one “person” in your life and you should cherish that idea. I have struggled with this idea that I may not meet “the one” until later in life myself, but it does not mean I am not surrounded by my soul mates. One person is not the other half of me, in fact I am mostly complete and as I grow I give parts of myself to others who take them and become perfect matches for me or they give them back so I can grow and find the best people for me.

You will leave and find parts of your soul in many people, just remember the other soul mates you will find are just as important as the romantic one.