I almost get married in Tahiti

I found the girls in Tahiti to be very amicable when I passed that way in 1960. I had agreed to go with my friend, Ken, on a cruise through the Pacific, which I found to be a great opportunity to report on how the islanders there were taking Westernization. In Tahiti I met Matalani, a girl about half my age, but her parents didn't seem to mind. Her father sat me down and told me that, as long as I loved their daughter, they gave their blessing, and they wondered if I would take her to live with me in America. Matalani seemed quite happy when they mentioned this, but I told them I wasn't going to America for some time, and I had no room in my life for a wife at that time. They were deeply hurt, Matalani even more so. She was a wonderful girl, but a little provincial for my tastes.