Sophie Keller - How Happy Is Your Love Life?

The Fruitstock Music Festival in
Regents Park, London, England.
Sunday, August 10, 2003,
at approximately 4:15 p.m.

This book is dedicated to my ANYWHERE,
ANYTIME, and yours to come.

ANYWHERE. ANYTIME.

That is where you can meet your life partner, and that is when . Remember that when youre sitting at home grieving over a failed relationship. Remember that when you are fed up with being alone. Remember that when you feel so ready and have felt that way for so long and yet he or she refuses to appear.

You could be in a store, at a music festival, crossing the road, introduced by friends, in a library, in a class or at the gym. The possibilities of where you might meet are endless, and that, of course, is the beauty of it. And you dont know when that fateful moment might be, because meeting your partner is one of the things in life you cannot control, and it usually comes when you are least expecting it.

And on that day when you do finally walk up the aisle to meet your husband-to-be or wife-to-be, you will wonder why you wasted so much time being frightened and not trusting that one day this would happen to you when it has happened to so many people before you and will happen to so many after.

As anyone who has met his or her life partner will attest, it is usually a sliding-door moment that has as much to do with timing as it does with anything else. You need to be ready, your partner needs to be ready and then there is a third universal element that needs to be ready. However you choose to look at it, whether you believe in divine intervention, the planets aligning or pure luck, when you do meet your life partner, more often than not you will realize that the timing is perfect. Maybe six months previously you were living in another country or still in a relationship, or maybe your partner was still busy enjoying playing the field. Whatever was happening, one of the three elements was not in place and it is only in hindsight that you will see that timing is key.

Take my story, for instance.

On August 11, 2003, the Fruitstock Music Festival was taking place in Regents Park in London. I was there that afternoon, having a picnic with my brother and some of his friends. Simultaneously, my now husband, Oliver, walked out of his house in Maida Vale to go to his mothers house for tea. As he approached his Vespa, his neighbor, Leanne, walked out of her house at exactly the same time. One minute earlier or later and they would have missed each other.

Hi, Oli, she said. Were going to a music festival in Regents Park. Do you want to come with us?

Sorry, I cant, said Oli. Ive got to go to my mums for tea.

Come on, said Leanne. Come for just half an hour. Quite a few of your old friends will be there. Nick, Charlie

Okay, said Oli. Ill come for fifteen minutes.

As I was sitting on the grass with a group of people, I saw a man in the distance, maybe fifty yards away, walking toward us. I got up, almost unconsciously, and walked toward him before he was even close.

Hi, I said. Im Sophie.

Hi, he said. Im Oli.

We were engaged four months later.

That is how it can happen, out of nowhere and as quickly as that. ANYWHERE. ANYTIME. One day youre single; the next youre with your life partner.

There is one final aspect to this story. Oliver and I were long distance for six months. Even though I am British, I was living in Los Angeles and he was in London. When I went back to London the following April to prepare for the wedding, we went to his aunts house for dinner. She said, Sophie, I have photos of you when you were a child. She went to her bookshelf and pulled out an old album, flipped through it and opened a page of photos of her daughters birthday party, and there I was, as a babywith Oli.

Perhaps youve met your life partner and dont know it yet, or perhaps you have yet to meet him. Maybe youve been single for what feels like ages, or maybe youre fresh out of a relationship and frustrated that you havent met someone special yet. Maybe you are dating someone now but arent sure if he or she is really the one. If you can relate to any of these possibilities, then this book is for you.

Every tip in this book is designed to help you create a happier love life. The tips are designed to shift your consciousness and bring you to a place where you feel completely happy with who you are, and help you clarify who it is that you are looking for so that you can attract that person. And once youve met someone who is a possibility, there are tips to help you determine if he or she is truly the one.

All you need to do is to keep working on yourself, drop the need, get out of the house and then let magic happen, because it will. It did for me, it does for millions of others every day and it will for you. In the meantime, enjoy this book, which I hope will be a good companion on your journey, and be sure to let me know when you meet your life partner.

Love, Sophie