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This is their story, from Michael's email of 5 July 1997:
" Even though me and my partner do not qualify to be included in your listing because we have the same nationality, I'm kindly trying to broaden your perspectives or knowledge about couples in Micronesia. Unfortunately, we're not married yet.
We go to the same college, she's a sophomore, I'm a junior. In the fall term of 1995, she came in as a freshmen. I courted her for a full year, maintaining a great friendship, but nothing further. Well, last year I "hit the jackpot" and we started going out. Since we were away from home, we got very close cuz of the dorm life in college. Now, we've contacted our parents and are hoping to get married when both of us are done here.
You see, back in Micronesia...there is no such thing as dating. Guys sneak up to the girls house when the parents go to sleep and call her outside. There, they would go to their secret place to meet, talk, and "make out" so to speak. When you feel that you have the right person, then the man's parents, accompanied by him or not, would go to the house of the girl and ask for her hand. Offerings of food, generosity, and showing of wealth usually wins over the girl.
However, in the past, there was a lot of "arranged" marriages. Love was not a priority for the parent's choices. Usually it involved politics or rewards. With time, more aspects of western relationships have been adopted. Wealthy families allow their kids to date in public. Kapiolani is from the state of Chuuk. Its a neighboring state to mine some 200 miles west. I went to high school at the capitol of that state. Sort of like going to Honolulu in Hawaii. Its a separate island known as the district center (known as Weno). Despite the smallness in size of the island, some 20,000 people reside there. I never knew her when I was there cuz she went to another school, a competing catholic school.
My island is the largest among about 2,000 islands making up the island nation known simply as the Federated States of Micronesia. The region known as Micronesia is made up of about four island nations with mine being one of them.
To say the least, I speak a different language than my sweetheart's. I do not understand hers. I speak about two other languages from other close by islands and she speaks her native tongue with another language from a close by island."
