Exotic Species - Time Capsule continued

"I regret that year."

"Why? How could you regret a year overseas, a year in Europe?"

"Oh, there were beautiful, unforgettable moments - like snapshots of what it should have been."

"But?"

"I was 20, I was already ashamed of a lot about myself. I was never made to feel particularly interesting or attractive or even likeable. So I was completely unable to cope with the budding emotions that I began to feel for another that year. And equally unequipped for how she felt about me."

"So this is about a woman. I knew it!"

"Isn't it always? Isn't what's in our heart the only thing that truly stays with us? I mean, it was 25 years ago but I still remember the day I had coffee with Megan like it was a last week. She was this awkward girl from Minnesota, hid behind big round glasses and a bob haircut that covered most of her face. It was like she was hiding from her own beauty or hiding her beauty from everyone. And she was beautiful - inside and out. We spent four hours talking about anything and everything. I was sipping spiked coffee, smoking cigarettes...I was tipsy and in love. How do I describe it? Sitting in a cafe, in Germany, with a truly brilliant and stunning lady, talking about the meaning of life, the meaning of our lives..."

"What happened? Did she go back home, did she find someone else?"

"No, it was me, once I sobered up I became embarrassed by her....saying that embarrasses me and it dishonors Megan. You see, the other Americans, they were pairing up with porcelain Danish dolls and sophisticated French maids, wholesomely stunning Finns and sultry Spanish girls with olive skin. Me? Here I was, falling for this dorky, pasty girl from a Minneapolis suburb who loved horoscopes and history. I wanted to be one of the guys with an exotic European...Christ."

"Did you find your elusive foreign girl?"

"Never. And I turned my back on the most amazing women I've ever met. All because I hadn't learned, I'd never been taught that love was how you felt deep in your chest, in your soul, not some poetic construct of a beautiful face as a symbol of a beautiful soul. You see, she might not have been the porcelain doll or the natural beauty but her soul shone so bright, with such depth, she put them all to shame, they were mere candles in the light of the sun. And, if I'd gotten closer and if I'd pushed back those bangs I would have seen that gorgeous face."

"Dad?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think you'll ever see Megan again?"

"No. I think you have one chance to get it right when it's love. That's why you need to tell Miranda how you feel, maybe she's the one, maybe she's not, but she's worth the chance if your heart says so. Don't be afraid to make a fool of yourself, don't be afraid to lay bare everything that makes you different than the others. You might be surprised by how many girls are looking for you. I know now that I'd have rather failed a thousand times trying to win Megan's heart than to turn my back the way I did. You see, I lost the most exotic species of all."