Virtual Love Blooms in a COVID-19 World

It’s time to start a revolution! I want the world to explode in virtual love.

The world is on fire and way too many people are dying and sick. My heart bleeds for all those who are suffering. I want it to end just like everyone else, but I have a feeling this trauma has changed the world permanently.

I am hoping that our global suffering from a common enemy naturally helps unify the countries enough to have a willingness and determination to work together to form a safer and more just world.

Maybe I am dreaming, but I am one to like happy endings. 

Virtual Romance

Another area I believe will change, since I am in a predicting mood, is the way humans form relationships. Yes, we will have the standard girl meets whatever and that relationship starts. We will also have matchmaking and online services, but since the whole world has lived under a “stay at home” order, there might be another way for romances to bloom—virtual romances!

Doesn’t that sound a little fun? Okay, for some of you, that might sound weird, but hear me out before you ditch the idea entirely.

Romances are a popular pastime to engage in when humans are at war. Look at World War II. Yep, the vast population explosion of the boomers is the result of that love. There is something about going to war that just makes a human want to be connected to another human being.

We are wired for love, and the threat of sickness and death makes that wiring activate.

War Breeds Creativity

There have been many technologies, music, and art that have been created under the pressure of war. Some of the new inventions have led to medicine and science that have saved lives. There have also been masterpieces created. To counter that, some of those inventions brought more evil to the world.

Creative Ways to Meet

When a war is brewing, the need to meet creatively increases. Right now, we are at war, and I see that creativity erupt all around me—from my daughters making masks from their old jeans and tee-shirts to the local brewery producing hand sanitizers. I love watching positive news to see how people are helping.

Part of that brewing creativity is how single people are meeting other single people. I have already heard stories of people who were friends before all this started, and they have reached out and are connecting more deeply. They are having some good conversations.

One of my sons arranged a virtual date. He even had Doordash deliver their meals at their doorstep so they could eat together. How cute. When I called him to find out all the dirt, he wouldn’t tell his mom anything! ☹ So, maybe something is happening … 

My other boy told me that the single sites are exploding, reaching record highs of membership. Since my second boy was aware of this maybe there is hope that . . . (I always get in trouble with my husband for hoping for more grandbabies but I want more grandbabies. I only have one and a half … )

I am all for virtual dating. It sounds kind of romantic, doesn’t it? Think about it. If you meet someone virtually, you are forced to get to know the person before all the physical stuff starts brewing.

Advantages of a Virtual Romance

Here are some benefits of starting a virtual romance:

*You have to talk to each other, which means that you are getting to know each other perhaps on a deeper level. It is harder to have activity distractions when on a virtual date. Granted, you can do things together, like drinking a beverage or eating dinner. Still, the very nature of connecting through a computer screen requires asking if the other person can hear you or see you, which is the beginning of talking.

*It is more intimate. When you have a camera on you all the time, it is much harder to hide your expressions and feelings.

Have you noticed when you do your virtual meetings, if the cameras are on, everyone can see what you are doing all the time, including yourself. That is taking being with someone to a whole new level.

*Then there is the virtual kiss. (Yes, I am keeping this clean since my audience is closed-door romance.) Have you ever tried to kiss someone through a computer screen? How was the experience for you? Did you feel connected to the other person? ( ) Or weird?

The crazy thing is, your subconscious doesn’t know the difference between reality and what you imagine. So, if in your mind’s eye you are kissing the other person virtually, you will have some physical reaction, and you don’t even have to worry about getting a disease from that other person. Talk about a bonus! (I know it is not the same as a real kiss, but it is better than no kissing.)

If a couple really wanted to dive into the kissing thing, they could have open conversations about what they like when kissing. The other person could go in great detail what they like. They could explore how to make the experience better for both involved.

There are advantages to this approach (I am guessing). Can you imagine talking to another person and really communicating to them what you like and having them let you know how they are wired?

The couple could work out a lot of quirks before they have their first real kiss.

* If you search online dating, you can be more refined with your searches based on the keywords that you put in. Which means you have increased control of the selections of who you could possibly be dating. (When I did online dating, my past and my current husbands found me outside my limits for age … just saying in theory you could stick to what you think you want.)

*Some sites claim there is a science of relationships behind their system. That might increase your odds of meeting the right person. I have met my last two husbands online, so that is saying something. Not sure what. If you ask my mom, it is saying that I am taking more chances of meeting someone scary. Sorry, Mom. I guess I am an adventurer.

*Takes down the barrier for the shy person to initiate if it’s just typing, and hopefully, that barrier is gone when you start going onto a video platform and having your date.

*If one were going to develop a relationship virtually, they would also have the advantage of sharing a different experience of the world with the person they are connecting to. There are no limits of geography to whom you can connect to. The world is your playing field.

A single person in California can connect with Russia virtually. When they get on Whats App or whatever forum they choose to use, they can use their camera to show the other person what it is like in real-time in their part of the world.

It’s like watching a travel show, but hopefully, you actually care about the setting for the person you are developing feelings for. Can you imagine seeing the condition of the person of interest’s kitchen before you go on your first physical date?

Dating virtually would require each person to voice their needs and wants more. The budding couple has more time to talk and to really figure out what the other person thinks, wants, and believes. Granted, after developing this beautiful connection virtually, if the couple ever gets together in person, it might be bizarre. I mean, they would know each other perhaps better than most people in their lives, and yet they don’t know if the two of them would get along physically together for long or even short periods.

That is a risk. It might be a bigger risk than meeting in person. It might not be. I do know that love is risky no matter which way a person looks at it.

Your Opinion Matters

I would love to hear what you think. Do you think that virtual love will be on the rise from the current crisis? Would you be willing to give virtual love a try? Do you think that virtual love has a more substantial chance of being successful? You can send me a message on Facebook.

In a Virtual Relationship Now?

If you are, by chance, in a virtual relationship right now, I would love to hear about it. I am just so curious about what kind of love stories we are going to hear birthing out of this virus crisis.

How did your romance get started? I sit around some days and just try to imagine how two people are finding each other in the middle of all this. I would love to hear how it is actually happening! I hope someone makes a documentary on it. I would watch it.

Are you planning on meeting? Did I miss some of the advantages? Do you think your love story would make a good romance novel?

Boosting Your Immune System through Reading Romance

If you are interested in boosting your immune system through reading a positive romance, check out my bestselling Millionaire Engagement series.

–Anastasia