On Seeing The 100% Perfect Girl One Beautiful April Morning by Haruki Murakami, 1981
The magic trick:
Espousing a wonderful worldview
Happy Valentine’s Day.
Today’s story is a wonder of love and romance. Oddly, it’s also the foundation for the plot of a very questionable John Cusack vehicle, Serendipity, but never mind that part for now.
Let’s focus on the love and romance part. The story espouses a really cool worldview. It’s fatalistic. It’s cosmic. It’s probably exactly how the world works. And that’s quite a trick on Murakami’s part.
The selection:
How can I approach her? What should I say?
“Good morning, miss. Do you think you could spare half an hour for a little conversation?”
Ridiculous. I’d sound like an insurance salesman.
“Pardon me, but would you happen to know if there is an allnight cleaners in the neighborhood?”
No, this is just as ridiculous. I’m not carrying any laundry, for one thing. Who’s going to buy a line like that?
Maybe the simple truth would do. “Good morning. You are the 100% perfect girl for me.”
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