Scene: Meadowood Lodge in Sonoma, California – June 1995
Characters:
Michael, 31, from Bavaria, Germany and was working for Siemens in the Bay Area since 1994. He has finished an internship and returned to Berlin and his longtime girlfriend, where they plan to start living together.
Shara, 33, living in San Francisco, working in Silicon Valley as an event manager and EA to an Exec VP at Oracle. She’s worked hard all her life trying to scratch out a future. She loves her job but wants a family, to be a mother, raise great kids.
Laying there alone in the sun, a member of the staff approaches her with the pool phone on a long cord, “Miss Shara – there’s a call for you.” She feels like one of her VIPs as she takes the phone.
She answers, “Hello, this is Shara.”
“Hi, it’s me” he says in his silky accent, “Finally I got you! I’ve been trying for days to talk to you.”
“Michael? I thought I’d never hear your voice again and it freaked me out when I listened to all your voicemails. You sounded sad, then happy. What’s wrong? Your messages sounded so strange; that you needed to talk to me, that it was important. I’ve missed you!”
“What are you doing right now?”
“I just finished running a three-day VIP event in Sonoma! We introduced the new consulting strategy to our best customers while wining and dining them. I sent them on their way this morning. Robert told me to take the afternoon off. I’m sitting by the pool right now, celebrating!”
“That sounds great! I wish I was there. It’s cold and midnight here.”
“Yeah, I wish you were here in the sun with me too… What’s that noise?” she asked as a piercing, wailing sound took over the line. “Is that a German police car? It sounds like something from James Bond!”
“Ja, a German police car.” He answered, laughing, employing a singsong German accent.
“Cool! I finally figured out how to call the number you left and spoke with your mother, but she couldn’t tell me anything. I thought maybe you had AIDs or something, or your cancer had returned. What’s going on?”
“Yes, she told me you called!” he laughed at my worries, and explained, “Shara, my Schatzi, I made such a mistake. I realized already on the plane that I had made the wrong decision. I read “The Bridges of Madison County” that you gave me and started to cry. I was a mess during the whole flight. A French couple next to me asked, ees eevar Eting OK?” He laughed his full honest laugh and said, “That story helped me figure out, I could change my mind. My life can be different if we want it.”
She repositioned herself on the chaise, watched some kids swimming in the pool, twisted the phone cord around her fingers. “What do you mean? Different how?”
“Do you miss me?” in his sexy soft German accent.
“Yeah, I’ve missed you Michael, but we said good-bye forever. It was like a movie scene at the airport with both of us crying, exchanging books, (he gave me a set of inscribed “Narnia Chronicles”, which we had read together) and kissing good-bye after those amazing months of intoxicating limerance. It was excruciating because yeah that was an intense heaven-on-earth time, but I always knew you were going away. We were ‘just having fun’, and we did. I’ve been so busy working – there hasn’t been much time to miss you and I’m getting on with my career. We decided you would go back to Germany and Ilona, and I knew that. Robert told me this morning that I could start to take on more. Bigger high-end events where I travel, have staff, more money, stock options.”
He was quiet for a minute, then went for it, “Could you take a vacation, come visit, see Germany and meet my family, spend some time and imagine if you could live here?”
She looked at fresh Spring-green Sonoma hills in the distance.
“Look Michael, I’m at the top of my game. Stock is doubling, this world wide web thing is starting to really become The Information Highway Larry Ellison envisioned. These are exciting times and I get to be a part of it.” She paused, realizing this was a big deal too – this is a Big Moment. “But you, you’re different than anyone I’ve ever met. You have long hair and smoke cigarettes and weed like a bad boy, you are not a materialistic work-obsessed yuppie like the other guys I’ve met. You’re a reader. You make me laugh and you have perspectives I never thought about, you’re authentic. I love you for those things.”
So now she went for it, gulping in air and confidence. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but yes. I haven’t taken real vacation in years. I’ll come visit you. Oh My God are we really going to do this? I can’t stop smiling, so it must be the right thing. I’m so excited! This feels great! I’m going to see you again!
The beautiful young lover that she hadn’t taken seriously replied, “I’m feeling the same way! O Mein Gott! We’ll figure this out. I’m so happy! I love you. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Ok – talk to you tomorrow! Ciao!” She hung up, screeched a little yell, staring deeply at the Sonoma Hills in the distance. At that moment, they represented her California success, but also predictable and boring. Could be that going out at the top of your game was not a bad idea. Giving the phone back to the pool guy, she ordered a glass of champagne.
Driving home she possessed a new energy. Singing along loudly to the (Coincidentally German?) Alphaville’s “Big in Japan,” she knew that perhaps, her life had changed today.
