Soul what?

Just the other day, I was having a seemingly innocent conversation, most likely about work, or about the benefits of cookies over cake, or perhaps about Harry Potter, when . . . BAM! I was blind sided by a question about whether Mr. Pin Cushion was my soul mate. This would have posed no problems if I had been able to cooly reply, "Of course he is! I love him so, that soul mate of mine." But I didn't say that. Because- wait for it- I don't think he's my soul mate.

It's nothing against Mr. Pin Cushion. I just don't personally believe in soul mates. And that's okay. Mr. PC feels the same way. We both think that our relationship is absolutely fantastic and we wouldn't pick anyone else to be with. But it takes work. And compromise ("I'll stop embarrassing you by speaking in strange accents when we're in public if you give me a 5 minute foot massage tonight."). 

And for Mr. Pin Cushion's highly enlarged left brain, he just can't fathom that out of the 3 billion females in the world, he happened to have met the one he was fated for at such a young age. In high school. And though it's not the most romantic take on our love, I agree with him.

The Australian comedian-singer, Tim Minchin, has a song that perfectly demonstrates the Pin Cushions take on soul mates. For your viewing pleasure:

If you choose not to watch the video because 1) you have something against Australians after hearing the phrase, "Let's put another shrimp on the barby" one too many times, or 2) looking at Tim Minchin's massive amounts of eye liner makes your eyes water, or 3) you work in a cubicle, don't own headphones and don't want to scare your coworkers . . . then here's a short excerpt of some lyrics:

"If I didn't have you, someone else would do.

Your love is one in a million, you couldn't buy it at any price.

But of the 9.999 hundred thousand other possible loves,

Statistically, some of them would be equally nice.

Or maybe not as nice, but let's say, smarter than you.

Or dumber, but better at sports. Or tracing. I'm just saying. 

I really think I'd probably have somebody else. Yah."

and another great lyric:

"Look, I'm not undervaluing what we've got when I say
That given the role chaos inevitably plays in the inherently flawed notion of fate,
It's obtuse to deduce that I found my soul mate at the age of 17.
It's just mathematically unlikely that at a university in Perth,
I happened to stumble on the one girl on earth specifically designed for me."

Back to the not-so-innocent conversation with the bomb-of-a-question. I stumbled my way through explaining that while I don't believe in soul mates, I still think Mr. PC is swell, and can't wait to marry him. But I couldn't help but think that my friend's look really meant, "Oh poor thing. You don't know what love REALLY is. If you did, you'd believe in soul mates." It was entirely too awkward and really put my sweat glands into overdrive.

I'd like to know, fair readers, do you believe in soul mates? Does your main squeeze share your opinion?