Wow. I love your dad. Can I have him?? Makes me wish I had a dad around! GLO, I'm wondering. What about his letter suggests the "emotionally stinging truth"? I think he's gentle and profound. I especially love his advice: [don't] allow the perfect to be the enemy of the good. That's just friggin' brilliant and beautifully stated. We all have choices. And sometimes we have so many opportunities that we actually miss the really good ones. But at what expense? Often, it's at the expense of OTHER really great opportunities. I will tell you... when I finally realized that I was acting exactly as your father suggested (in my case, I was waiting for Prince Charming's arrival with some sort of heralding like angels shouting the Hallelujah chorus), it was when I finally was able to RELAX about my life and men. I realized that I wanted to have a happy life. I made a list about what that meant -- with or without a man by my side. I was choosing to life a joyous, happy life. And... I might mention... once that happened - once I stopped pushing my own dreams and agenda, once I stopped claiming "I KNOW what I want in a man", and once I became more open to dating men, giving them time, and becoming their friends - that's when I started learning. And that's when I met my husband. I know for a fact if I had met Evan under my previous thinking, I wouldn't have dated him. Wouldn't have given him a second chance. I would have missed out on meeting Prince Charming, simply because he was dressed as a normal-looking man. There's this whole idea of "settling" when someone gets married. And, to a degree, it is a form of settling, but in my case I don't believe that "settling has to do with having mercy on a guy who you don't want to be with. I didn't "settle" for a man who was not my ideal (happily, he is more than I ever dreamed of). Instead, I SETTLED into myself. I relaxed. I realized that as long as I focused on being kind, good, happy, and kept pursuing a loving life, that the idea of romance wouldn't be so daunting and harrowing. And I actually started to have FUN dating. If you are really looking for Prince Charming, I will tell you a secret that I learned during my project. Prince Charming is hiding within every single man. He might not be "your" Prince Charming, but he is certainly someone's. Don't you think it will be easier to identify your flavor of royalty if you start trying to see it in every man you come across? I guarantee you, it is worth it. You will be surprised. You will stop forcing your ideas of the "perfect man." Plus, I believe God (or whatever higher power people believe in) is watching over all of us. I believe a system is in the works that is greater than all of us. So relax. Have a little faith. And know that you don't need to be rescued with pomp and circumstance. You are already royalty in my book.

I like leaving novels! :)