Valentine’s Day can be a tough time of year for many. For some, it’s a day to cherish the one you love; a day to appreciate your significant other and spoil them with all the supermarket chocolates and flowers that money can buy. For others, it’s a timely reminder that you haven’t yet found ‘the one’ and although these chocolates say ‘share pack,’ today, these chocolates are for one.

For those who are spending today alone, you may be on the cusp of giving up; accepting the fact that the romance ship has sailed and you didn’t quite make it on board. However, I am here to bring you hope. I beg of you to give love one more chance and keep faith, for it is something as simple as a toilet that can bring you eternal happiness, just like it did for one family in India.

Upon returning from an Insight Trip to India, an Opportunity employee shared with us a story; a story of lust, of rejection, of turmoil, of growth, and eventually, of love.

It is a story of a family in India, a family whose core values of love and relationships can be echoed across the globe. Similar to my own mum (who doesn’t miss a chance to enquire about how my non-existent love life is going), an Indian mother who received a small loan from Opportunity, was desperate for her son to get married. She wanted him to find a beautiful wife who would produce beautiful grandchildren and complete the beautiful circle of life. However, there was one problem… no one wanted to marry him.

This was a terrible situation. She disliked seeing her son sad and alone, and she felt utterly helpless. This all changed, however, when she received some advice from her loan officer. He suggested that if she installed a toilet in her house, someone would want to be her son’s wife.

Prepared to try anything, she installed a toilet in her family home.

Suddenly, her son had women lining up to marry him. What joy! Not only did her family now have access to a hygienic toilet reducing exposure to infectious diseases, her son was finally married!

With grandchildren on the horizon and a healthier home, this family now has a promising future ahead.

So don’t give up, if something as unglamorous as a toilet changed the course of love for this man, then I’m positive it isn’t the end for you. Find your ‘toilet’, and I’m sure by next Valentine’s Day, you’ll be flushed with love.