Lesson 5

[Mary Buchanan]

Lesson 5
Mary Buchanan RomCom Project Transformational Journey
What I learned from this assignment is that when the writer analyzes every aspect of a character’s life, the character responds differently to situations. The writer creates a greater experience for the reader, who sees the character as real. The writer has more ideas to use in the story. The story will become more real.

Margo Cashwell
1. Initial State: Margo is a beautiful determined real estate broker. She was a victim of a Ponzi scheme run by a classmate. She cannot cook, and she cannot keep a secret. She is confident because of her success as a real estate agent, but she begins to feel stupid after she loses all of her money. Margo is happy with her work and satisfied with her life. She has a great personality and is okay with not being married. However, when both of her best friends get married, Margo feels loneliness for the first time. She is a fifth wheel. She questions her choices in life. Is she too old to begin a relationship? Is she too set in her ways to change?
2. Meet-Cute Moment: When she meets Tony for the first time, it’s not a pleasant experience because he is an FBI agent investigator. She is intimidated, and then she associates him with the loss of her hard-earned money. It isn’t until Sydnee’s wedding that she meets the real Tony, who is handsome, friendly, and fun.
3. Initial Challenges: (1) Margo discovers Tony is the investigator for the new crime and she is accused of being an accomplice or partner to the Ponzi scheme. This rocks her world. She doesn’t know what to do because she is innocent. (2) She meets a con man who tries to trick her into a contract, but the occasion provides the introduction to another handsome man. (who happens to be an acquaintance of Tony). Tony stops him from calling Margo. Tony never called and now the new guy does not call. Margo’s life is a mess, and she is facing a criminal trial.
4. Major conflict/obstacle: A Category 4 hurricane is on the way to Madison County. Margo may lose everything again. She has already lost her money, but she worked hard to rebuild her wealth. The fear is exhausting.
5. Self-reflection: The time she is among friends and the severity of the storm gives her time to reflect on her life, and she realizes she never wants to be alone again. She’s afraid she is going to die.
6. Acceptance and Growth. Margo wants what her friends have: a life complete with family. She is of value. She will prove her innocence because she is innocent.
7. Demonstration and Growth: She tells Diane and Sydnee she thinks she loves Tony. Sydnee tells her about how Tony came to Madison looking for a house. When she hears Tony calling, she knows she loves him and he loves her. She admits the truth.
8. Reunion: When Tony proposes, she accepts.

Tony Leveche
1. Initial State: Tony fell in love in college, but his sweetheart chose a rich guy over him. He avoided romance after that. Then, he saw his fellow FBI partners, one by one, get divorced, He witnessed their frustration and despair when their marriages fell apart At that point, he chose the job over the relationship. He decided a quality relationship with a woman was impossible if one does the job correctly. He chose his career over marriage. He encouraged other young men to follow his plan. Marriage could get a man killed in more ways than one was his mantra. He also did not trust a woman. He was financially secure but not good enough for a woman. He feels insecure.
2. Meet-Cute moment: When he first saw Margo in the Madison Café, he saw her when she was worried about her money. She had just figured out that Ryan Richardson might not be so honest with her money. She did not see Tony in the restaurant, she was too worried. Tony felt he could help her. Then he goes to interview her for the investigation and sees how beautiful she is. She becomes the real estate agent and puts on her charm until she realizes why he is in her office. Then they meet again at Sydnee’s wedding to JJ. Tony notices how beautiful Margo is in that gorgeous red dress. It’s Valentine’s Day. Margo is alone at the head table. He goes to her rescue and becomes her dance partner for the night. They have a great time, and he ends the evening with, “I will call you.” Again, he doesn’t call due to his new assignment for the FBI. When he returns to Tallahassee, he discovers Margo is accused of being a partner in the Ponzi scheme.
3. Initial Challenges: Tony puts his job first. (1)He doesn’t believe Margo is guilty because the evidence doesn’t pass the “smell test.” However, his investigation doesn’t produce any errors about the evidence. He keeps returning to prison to question the criminal and works with other FBI experts to prove Margo’s innocence. (2) When he sees his acquaintance businessman is also interested in Margo, he stops the man( who is a playboy) from calling Margo. He knows the man will only hurt Margo. (Tony is a caring person)
4: Major Conflict The hurricane is coming. Tony goes one more time to prison to interrogate the criminal. He witnesses the man move into the second personality and the criminal tells the truth about how the new evidence is fraudulent. The weather is awful and the FBI office is closed. Tony has the evidence but can’t close the case until the Bureau hears the new case. He learns 3,000 body bags are ordered for the tri-county area. He’s afraid Margo might die not knowing she was cleared.
5. Self-Reflection During the storm, he realizes his life is not complete. He has relied on his work to fill the void. He’d rather be in a relationship. He’s not a bad guy.
6. Acceptance and Growth: He wants a life with Margo. He hopes it is not too late. He hopes she is alive. He must get to her. He hires a helicopter and pilot
7: When he arrives in Madison County, he runs to Margo’s house and does not find her. He finds a bike in the street and rides to Sydnee’s house and does not find her. He doesn’t know Diane’s address. He stops and talks to a cop ( Chase Carter), a friend of Margo, Sydnee, and Diane. He tells Tony how to get to Diane’s farmhouse.
8: The helicopter lands in the grazing field of the horses on Diane’s farmhouse. He runs as he yells for Margo. They are digging out of the basement, and Margo hears him calling her name. He proposes to her.

[William Peed]

Lesson 5

Mike Peed's Transformational Journeys

What I Learned From This Assignment: Miguel is too selfish, needs to become more selfless. Daniella is too selfless. Needs to become more selfish.

Miguel Cervantes

1. Initial State:

– On the run. He's being returned to captivity after another failed escape attempt.

2. Meet Cute Moment:

– At a mock execution staged by Miguel's captor, Pasha Hassan, Daniella acts to spare Miguel's life

3. Initial Challenges:

– Miguel is Pasha Hassan's Most Valuable Prisoner. He is in love with Daniella, Pasha Hassan's favorite concubine. They can never truly be together as long as they are held captive in Algiers.

4. Major Conflict/Obstacle:

– Miguel wants to flee for safety. Daniella doesn't want to risk leaving the safety of Algiers.

5. Self Reflection:

– At Daniella's request, Miguel tries to settle into domestic bliss with Daniella in Algiers

6. Acceptance and Growth:

– Miguel realizes that he can't live without Daniella, but he also can't share her with Pasha Hassan

7. Demonstration and Growth:

– Miguel hatches a plan to escape and to bring Daniella with him

8. Reunion:

– Miguel and Daniella work together to escape

Daniella

1. Initial State:

– She is Pasha Hassan's favorite concubine, and he is falling in love with her.

2. Meet Cute Moment:

– Daniella, Pasha Hassan's Favorite Concubine, saves the life of Miguel Cervantes, Pasha Hassan's Most Valuable Prisoner

3. Initial Challenge:

– Daniella is Pasha Hassan's Favorite Concubine. She is in love with Miguel, Pasha Hassan's Most Valuable Prisoner

4. Major Conflict/Obstacle:

– Miguel wants to risk everything to flee to freedom. Daniella doesn't want to leave the safety of Algiers.

5. Self Reflection:

– Daniella realizes that she needs the safety Pasha Hassan provides, but wants Miguel's love

6. Acceptance and Growth:

– Daniella realizes she needs to leave Pasha Hassan, but still for selfless reasons

7. Demonstration and Growth:

– She realizes she needs to leave because she can't trust anyone else to save her

8. Reunion:

– Daniella and Miguel work together to escape

• This reply was modified 8 months ago by  William Peed.

[Madeleine Vessel]

Madeleine’s Her Journey / His Journey

“What I learned doing this assignment is that creating a transformational journey for each of the protagonists gives the romantic story depth. Very cool.

The Individual Transformational Journey for David and Thea.

David’s Transformational Journey:
1. Initial state:

a. David is a successful marine architect/engineer, whose partner, Phil, a gambler, has lost everything they have, except his laptop and a stack of bills that still need paying, to his gambling creditors. When Phil is murdered by collectors, he’s advised by the police to lay low until they can find the culprits. He decides to go on a road trip.

2. Meet-Cute moment:

a. David meets Thea at the scene of his fancy car’s breakdown. She’s the tow truck driver come to his rescue. He’s so happy to see her, he kisses her hands.

3. Initial challenges:

a. While he is attracted to Thea, he can’t see her living in his world, living in a big city as a marine architect/engineer’s wife. To him, she’s a wild thing that can’t be tamed.

4. Major conflict / Obstacle:

a. After he goes to work for her father, just until his car is repaired, he finds himself on a steep learning curve, where she is his tutor. His pride starts to show.

5. Self-Reflection:

a. Then, because he doesn’t notice Curly lighting the fuses backwards, and they all nearly get blown up, he is confronted with her patient response. She should be mad as hell. What’s wrong with her?

6. Acceptance and Growth:

a. After his car is repaired, he chooses to return to California with the promise that he will call her. But then, he falls back into his old routine in a new office space. He doesn’t keep his promise to call her, but he has time to reflect on his prideful and even childish behavior. He realizes that Thea was ever patient with and supportive of him. He realizes that he needs that as opposed to longtime girlfriend who wants him to climb the ladder and make money and socialize with the city’s big wigs.

7. Demonstrate the change:

a. He returns to the Nevada town where Thea lives to apologize for his behavior and to show support for her freelance translation business. He brings her ????
b. But when he gets there, he finds that the family no longer lives in that town. The father died suddenly. The mother put the house up for sale and moved away to be near her son, who is married with children. And Thea, no one knows exactly where she’s gone.

8. Reunion:
a. He finally learns that Thea moved to San Diego and gets hold of her phone number.
b. He calls her, and they arrange to meet on the beach. They agree that they love one another and want to build a life together.

Thea’s Transformational Journey:
1. Initial State:

a. Thea in a garden apartment in San Francisco. She’s freelancing as a translator and interpreter, barely paying her bills. But then she gets a phone call from home. Her parents need her help over the summer to do mining assessment work. She packs her bags, quits her apartment and drives home.

2. Meet-Cute moment:

a. Driving a tow truck, she stops at David’s broken-down car, gives him first aid for dehydration, loads up his car, puts him in the passenger seat and heads for town. She’s playing the radio when a love song comes on. She starts to shut off the radio, but he asks her not to. He likes love songs. She feels a moment of connection and leaves the radio on.

3. Initial challenges:

a. When he moves into her parents’ house and starts working in the mine with her, it quickly becomes clear that he’s a city-slicker and from a very different world than she’s used to. She tutors him in the mining work, and he doesn’t like it much. She sees his pride and doesn’t like it.

4. Major conflict / Obstacle:

a. He won’t tell anyone his name, so she imagines all sorts of reasons why he is hiding his identity. Then the State Police show up and question him. This doesn’t bode well for their relationship.

b. When his car is repaired, he ups with a promise to call her. He leaves just ahead of a biker gang on a collection mission.

5. Self-Reflection:

a. After her father dies, she is left to complete the assessment work on her own. Out under the stars, she remembers the fun she and David had watching the stars from the hood of her car and how fond he was of starry nights at sea. She prays that he’ll call her.

6. Acceptance and Growth:

a. During the period of putting the family home up for sale and helping her mother relocate to a town near her brother’s family, she reconciles herself to the fact that he won’t call, but she vows not to put him behind her until she sees a starry night at sea. She moves to San Diego. Afterall, she works remotely and can go wherever she pleases and still get the work done.

7. Demonstrate the change:
a. She gets a call from him. She can’t control her overwhelming joy.

8. Reunion:
a. They arrange to meet on the beach. They agree that they love one another and want to build a life together that embraces both their worlds.

• This reply was modified 8 months ago by  Madeleine Vessel.

[Gayle Jackson]

Gayle’s Her Journey/ His Journey
What I learned doing this assignment is I need more work on the inner journey and the sense of boredom that makes someone risk everything for a stranger.

CASEY TURNER’S TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY:
• 1. Initial state:
Casey is a successful comic book author at a book conference in Istanbul lamenting how boring her personal life and relationship with her workaholic fiancé is.

• 2. Meet-Cute moment:
Assassins hired to get an artifact mistakenly handed to Casey at a market try to kill her on the Orient Express. Huck rescues her by pushing her off the train then jumping himself to escape the bullets.

• 3. Initial challenges:
Casey is engaged to be married and does not fully trust Huck since he has lied about his name and background. She does not believe Huck’s brash manners are appropriate and does not like how he took the name of her character and is not acting Huck-like.

• 4. Major conflict / Obstacle:
After a mad chase to the Romanian border, Casey decides to get help from the American Embassy, tell the truth, and return to her fiancé while Huck decides to find the artifact and negotiate for his life.

• 5. Self-Reflection:
Casey realizes she had more fun, interests and love for Huck and worries that she left him to finish the adventure on his own. She wrote the character to have a partner, and she can’t walk away from that. She ends her engagement.

• 6. Acceptance and Growth:
Casey finds Huck and together they find the artifact and have one last life-risking adventure.

• 7. Demonstrate the change:
Casey saves Huck when they are left in the crypt saying she will stay to help him because his life is worth saving.

• 8. Reunion:
After finishing her latest comic book about Huck and his partner working together, she goes on an adventure vacation and finds Huck is the tour guide. They are reunited and promise a life full of adventure.

HUCK HAWKINS’ TRANFORMATIONAL JOURNEY:
• 1. Initial state:
Huck Hawkins is a mercenary with his partner/lover hired to retrieve an artifact.

• 2. Meet-Cute moment:
Huck is double-crossed and learns Casey has the artifact by mistake. Huck saves her life by pushing her off the train and jumping to isolate her and find the artifact.

• 3. Initial challenges:
Huck is lying about who he is and why he is with Casey. She is uptight and scared and angry while he keeps the secret of what is really happening and why they are being chased.

• 4. Major conflict / Obstacle:
He is outdoorsy and a dreamer while she is sheltered and pragmatic. He needs to get the artifact but is not able to figure out the clues on his own. He needs her help, but only if he confesses the truth.

• 5. Self-Reflection:
When he tells her the truth, she panics and returns to her regular life by running to the embassy for help. He goes on his own and realizes he would rather be alone than be with the wrong partner.

• 6. Acceptance and Growth:
He realizes he needs Casey to find the artifact but doesn’t want to force her because it risks her life and he loves her, would never want to put her in danger.

• 7. Demonstrate the change:
When Casey comes to help, Huck tells her to go and not put herself in danger. She stays and they both almost die. He confesses his real name and why being the character means so much.

• 8. Reunion:
After escaping and recovering in the hospital, Huck takes a job as a solo adventure tour guide and Casey shows up for one of his tours. They embrace and promise to enjoy the next adventure together.

[H.B. Faulkner]

H. B. Faulkner's Her Journey/His Journey

What I learned doing this assignment is that this part was the easiest for me, flowed easily to me, and I think this is always true no matter what type of writing I'm doing.

Individual Transformational Journey for each lead character:

Each character’s Transformational Journey contains:

1. Initial state:
Him: Living as a hermit in the high mountains, because he carries heavy guilt and pain over his perception that he has killed his parents and fiancé. He's given up on all his former dreams and is only existing, alone in the world but aching, missing his loved ones.

Her: Running away from pain of disapproval from her parents. She acts as if they are dead, not correcting people who assume this. She is on her way to beginning another degree program because she has no other ideas of how to become and do what she dreams of being and doing. She doesn't know how to be confident in herself.

2. Meet-Cute moment:
He comes to rescue the group she is with, and she knocks him out because of a misunderstanding. Then she must doctor him and checks him out, trying to see past his bushy hair and beard, while he's unconscious.

3. Initial challenges:
Him: He's helped a rumor about himself become a fearful legend in the area (the murderous mountain troll), to protect himself from guilt and pain surfacing in him. He doesn't like being around people because he doesn't want them to know what he has done. He also doesn't want to even remember his former life dreams because he believes this is how he killed his loved ones.

Her: He shows disdain for "elective" degrees (art, music, etc.). She is offended briefly but used to this opinion, so in making the time in close quarters bearable, she tries to demonstrate the need for artistic pursuits. Even with his high opinion of the need for higher thought and education, when he learns more about her, he challenges her motives for getting her M.F.A. She doesn't enjoy this challenge because it's the only thing she knows to do to obtain the future she has mapped out for herself.

4. Major conflict / Obstacle:
Him: No matter how she tries to convince him, he won't stop believing that his loved ones' deaths were his fault. And he can't let himself invent anymore because of it.

Her: He thoroughly denigrates her dreams and disesteems her artist identity. She's failed in all her attempts to change his mind, and now, he has become the disapproving dream-destroyer, and she must flee from this.

5. Self-Reflection:
Him: She has convinced him of the value of artistic pursuits, in several ways, including a very significant way. But when he realizes this, she's gone. The deeper realization is that he'd never believed his pursuits were "higher". He'd only thought this belief is what was necessary to not struggle in life. He wants to apologize for hurting her, but he can't find her.

Her: She courageously steps out, instead of doing what she'd planned (an M.F.A.) and discovers the way to achieve her dreams was exactly what she'd told herself since childhood. All she had needed was that "disapproving" push from him.

6. Acceptance and Growth:
Him: He realizes what he's really always wanted is to make life easier for people (because his mother became disabled, and his family struggled). She (the artist) had brought this realization to the surface, and he realizes he needs her in his life.

Her: She pursues and begins achieving her dreams, then instead of needing to prove herself, she forgives all the naysayers, including him. She decides that everyone has opinions created by the bubbles they live in, which constrains what they allow themselves to learn. She realizes she can't control others' beliefs. She can only demonstrate her own.

7. Demonstrate the change:
Him: He returns to his dreams and eventually starts a factory that helps a lot of people. When he finds out where she is, he immediately goes to ask forgiveness, but she slips through his fingers again.

Her: She comes to the point of peace and fulfillment in her life then returns to make amends with her parents and to celebrate his success that she has followed and known from the day she left and also knows she had a part in. She mostly hopes to see that he wants her.

8. Reunion:
She sees evidence that he had been nearby when she was abroad. He tells her he saw that she didn't need him and also saw that she knew about his success, and that he didn't know what to do, but then she disappeared again. At that moment, she knows that he loves her, and they embrace, and we know they'll be together forever.

[Bent Hanlen]

Bent’s his her journey
what i learned doing this assignment is this ……… I’m finding the differences that create conflict. And I’m developing more of them as I create this list.

Tommy
1. Initial state: He used to be in a relationship and it failed so he has shut down inside.
2. Meet-Cute moment: Tommy helps Nimfa’s family in a time of need and gets squirted with water by a leaking pipe. She wipes him down.
3. Initial challenges: He is blind to her advances
4. Major conflict / Obstacle: Nimfa has another man chasing her who prefers her as a submissive. Tommy doesn’t like that as he sees women as equals. So he remains professional and leaves when the work is done.
5. Self-Reflection: Tommy wonders if he should have stood up for Nimfa.
6. Acceptance and Growth: He returns to the house to fix something else. He tells the other guy going after Nimfa to talk to her with respect.
7. Demonstrate the change: He stands up for her. He tells off his boss who ate the gift of food.
8. Reunion: Tommy opens his heart to Nimfa and finds work elsewhere .

[Alison Benson]

THE ROMCOM TRANSFORMATIONAL JOURNEY

What I learned doing this assignment is that every time I do another assignment, the story improves. My goal is to get the characters layered.
I also can feel the plot improving by incorporating it with the visible tangible goal as a metaphor for the theme.

INA
INITIAL STATE:
Ina keeps checklists of everything in her life, from running her floristry business, creating a very controlled garden at her grandpa’s ‘mens shed’ in a competition first prize cash for shed renos and what she wants in life partner – to love her family, to love her grandpa’s matzo balls, to make her laugh, to be Jewish – she owes this to her Holocaust survivor grandpa to keep the legacy of the culture alive. After a series of unsuccessful dates with the only box ticked is “Jewish”, – she tears the last one up, There is no one out there.

MEET-CUTE MOMENT

Ina is in the garden with her best friend, Shell, at her brother’s bar mitzvah. There’s another function next door. The girls challenge a couple of guys about what makes a good life partner which doesn’t exist. They stand near a tall hedge. They listen to two men discussing women and relationships, one makes a joke, this is Dave. Ina smiles, it was clever. She banters with him. Ina’s argument – the way it works – good ones are taken, or they’re losers or narcissists particularly the good looking ones. Dave responds that women are flakey, untrustworthy, and they don’t really know what they want. Ina says she knows exactly what she wants. How’s that working for you? Ina and Dave lean into the hedge on their respective sides. Ina loses her footing and falls through. Dave catches her.
Their eyes meet – Dave is huge and gorgeous.
They have an Officer and a Gentleman moment.
Ina takes the frangipani from behind his ear.

INITIAL CHALLENGES

Ina needs a driver for a big order as she’s lost her license speeding. She calls Shell, a courier, no one is available. She calls the customer to say she’ll be there asap. They tell her, they have a big van, they’ll send it around. The van belongs to Dave.
She is invited into Dave’s function. His family are very excited to meet someone Jewish after all, they are God's chosen people.
Ina invites Dave to a Shabbat dinner – as her driver. He has tattoos so tells him it’s 'customary' to wear long sleeves at Shabbat. She doesn’t want her grandpa to see the tattoos since he’s a holocaust survivor. Dave loves the matzo balls, loves the family, tells good stories, everyone is entertained, her brother adores him, he rolls up his sleeves, everyone is in awe at the size of his arms and his tattoos.
Ina goes to church with Dave, looks up expecting something – thunder, lightning. Since it’s an evangelist church, there’s lots of singing and dancing and rock music.
Dave helps Ina with the men’s shed garden. Ina is very structured with her plan.
Dave has creative ideas, he makes a new plan, Ina takes it but hides it under a rock. She won’t budge from her plan.
Dave has no issue entering Ina’s world, Ina has lots of issues entering Dave’s.

MAJOR CONFLICT/OBSTACLE

– with every date, things get worse for Ina, better for Dave. Ina doesn't know how to manage her growing feelings for him and her checklist. He ticks every box but is not Jewish.
– Ina sneaks away to see Dave.
– Dave’s family show her how to put down an umu, Ina’s grandpa shows Dave how to make matzo balls.
– Dave takes her to a footy game, Ina takes him to …
She lies to Dave that she's told her family and lies to her family that she and Dave are together.
At a shabbat dinner, the lies are exposed.
Dave apologizes to Ina’s family and leaves.

SELF-REFLECTION

Ina takes longer to accept she has feelings for Dave.

ACCEPTANCE AND GROWTH

Ina's Grandpa, her mentor, tells her to go after him. Sharing your life is not about ticking every box, it’s not easy compromising – it's an opportunity to make the family grow, be unique, be better.
Dave is gone.

DEMONSTRATE THE CHANGE

The next day, she goes to the men’s shed garden with her grandpa. It’s in full bloom, very beautiful but without character. Grandpa hands her Dave’s plan, it has extra elements that add to its beauty. She begins to make the changes. Grandpa goes inside, dials the phone, says hi to Dave.
It’s nightfall, Ina is exhausted. Dave’s van arrives.
He stands at the edge of the garden. He nods, it’s good.
Ina apologizes for lying, it was this box on her checklist, she owed it to her grandpa, says she can be flexible, change is good.

REUNION

Ina realizes it’s okay not to have all your boxes ticked and even though being Jewish was a big one, love conquers all, that we need to look at the similarities, not the differences. Dave reminds her of what their cultures have in common. Food, family, stories, food.

DAVE
INITIAL STATE

A gentle muscly giant, Polynesian, covered in tattoos, unlucky with a long term girlfriend who cheated on him and mocked his romantic gestures leaving him in pain.
He sees women as being flakey, untrustworthy and not knowing what they want.
He loves his culture – myths and legends, food, family.
He’s a painter by trade.
He does everything for everyone.

MEET-CUTE MOMENT

Dave is at his nephew's hair cutting ceremony, is outside with best mate, Mata, discussing how he will give up on dating for a while. The hurt was too much. He and Ina begin a discussion through a dividing hedge about what makes a good life partner but both agree it is unattainable. Dave catches her when she falls through the hedge. He didn;t expect her to be so pretty.

INITIAL CHALLENGES

Their issues make an appearance — either internally or externally.
Dave likes Ina but is reluctant to get into another relationship because he doesn’t trust any woman’s motive. He offers to help her with her deliveries.
He is interested to attend a Shabbat dinner and is the centre of attention.
Ina is shocked.
Dave offers to help with the men’s shed garden, he has creative ideas.

MAJOR CONFLICT/OBSTACLE

-The challenges explode, forcing the couple apart and clearly showing what needs to change for them to be together.
– When Dave discovers she’s been lying about them, he leaves her Shabbat dinner. He feared it was too good to be true.

SELF-REFLECTION
Dave is more accepting of Ina in his life.
The hope for love is still alive which means Dave still thinks about Ina even though she lied.

ACCEPTANCE AND GROWTH

Mata encourages Dave to go with his feelings despite being the one that didn;t want Ina in their lives because she isn;t Polynesian.

DEMONSTRATE THE CHANGE

Dave sees she made changes in her rigid garden, she has proven she’s prepared to compromise and accepts her apology. Dave lets her back in.

REUNION

Dave reminds her life isn’t a checklist. No more boxes.

• This reply was modified 6 months, 3 weeks ago by  Alison Benson.