Alison Taylor on relationships: Do you want to get lucky in love in 2015? Try being charitable...
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Your support makes all the difference.A big theme so far for 2015 is community. Making friends, being sociable, maybe even doing a good deed – what beats that really? When was the last time you 'reached out' to your neighbour, for instance? Take my friend Lucy*. She was recently coming back home from work and letting herself into her flat when she met a new (to her) neighbour in the corridor . He was hot, too, so it was a double win.
Then it got weird.
"I'm looking after my friend's dog," he said, displaying an agreeable caring side from the off.
Now my friend's a dog lover, so she was able to throw him some smiles and nods of recognition.
He carries on:
"The thing is, I have to brush his teeth and I don't really know how to go about it? Can you help me?"
Can you help me brush my friend's dog's teeth? Seriously? Is probably what she should've asked this toothbrush-wielding maniac. But no. She crossed his threshold.
Like I said, she's a dog lover. And a generous neighbour. She also has nimble fingers. The question on everyone's lips though is, what happened next? Since I changed her name, I don't mind telling you. They went all the way – and on the first meet, too. Shocking. How a canine dentist experience leads to fornication is beyond me but it's something to bear in mind. Charity clearly pays.
The second heartwarming community good deed of the year happened in Islington. My friend Gavin* had one of those head-turning moments walking along Upper Street. Like in a rom-com, he passed a leggy, crop-haired beauty and liked what he saw so held her gaze and did a 180-degree turn, as did she.
An hour later, he gets a cryptic text:
"What are your bank details?"
Turns out he'd dropped his wallet during his pavement pivot. I know, right? The next text from her:
"What's my reward if I give it back to you?"
Oo-er. You can see where this is going, of course. I actually wonder if maybe she pick-pocketed him to orchestrate the whole thing, in which case – high five to her for street smarts.
The point is, beautiful acts of kindness like this can and do happen. Teeth are cleaned, wallets are returned to their rightful owners and – if you're lucky – bodies are intertwined in loving embraces. You just have to be open to it.
*Names have been changed to protect the charitable
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