Fumio Funaki lives a relatively quiet life in Japan. At 77, he teaches English and runs a small, cozy café. But his love story—and his stories in general—are anything but small or quiet. And they’re making a splash across social media, moving many by his vulnerability and, quite frankly, his ability to weave colorful memories into mini stories, as if they were romance novellas. While in New York, Funaki had a chat with social media influencer Preston Rakovsky, who enjoys interviewing random strangers on the topic of love. (In fact, Rakovsky’s pinned post on Instagram is of himself carrying a sign that reads, “I’m bored. Let me ask you vulnerable questions.”) Funaki shared a heartbreakingly beautiful story about a woman he knew named Yoko. It certainly grabbed readers’ attention. And it didn’t hurt that it had traces of the plot from the 2004 film The Notebook. @prestonrack ♬ Sweet Bye and Bye / What A Friend We Have In Jesus – Elizabeth Cotten “Loving someone is both a scar and a gift” In a series of screenshots, Funaki relays that “loving someone is both a scar and a gift.” He goes on to explain that back in the mid-1970s, when he was in his mid-20s, he met a “girl in Tokyo. “I saw her on the street walking fast with tears in her eyes. And immediately I knew I would love her for a lifetime.” He explains their trajectory of heartbreak. “We ended up dating for a whole summer. We went to the hot springs and watched fireworks displays. And by autumn, I know I was ready to ask her the question: ‘Will you move to New York with me?’ I knew her parents wouldn’t approve of someone like me, but I had to try. I gave her my boarding time and gate number and stood there waiting and waiting and waiting. But she never came.” He didn’t give up. “I told myself she’d missed the flight, so I wrote to her every single day. I wrote 100 letters about New York, the life I was saving for her. And after three months, I got a letter from her. But when I opened it, there was no note. Only a single photograph fell onto my floor. I turned it over and my heart stopped. It was a picture of her in a wedding dress.” Screenshot Funaki simply couldn’t get rid of the photo. “For five years, I traveled across America, and I always carried her with me. But when I finally moved back home to Japan, I got a phone call.” The woman (Yoko) had wanted to see him, so of course, he obliged, sharing stories about his travels. The other shoe dropped And then the other shoe dropped. “She told me her parents had set her up with a suitable husband as soon as I’d left. I finally built up the courage to ask her, ‘How come you never responded to my letters?’ And she replied, ‘What letters?’ And we both froze in the hotel room. And all at once we realized, her parents had been hiding all of my letters from her.” His epiphany was now clear as day. “All of those years, she thought I’d forgotten her. And I thought she’d chosen someone else over me. But now she knew I had loved her. And I know she had loved me. And I know it sounds crazy, but that was enough. Even though we couldn’t be together. Even though I carried her with me all those years. Even though it seemed pointless. Yes, losing her left a scar I still carry. But loving her was the gift that came with it because loving someone is its own reward.” Just like ‘The Notebook’ The comments, as one might expect, are swooning with awe. On comedian Patton Oswalt’s Threads page, he captioned, “This just knocked me OUT.” While, of course, people compared the story to that of The Notebook, another had this lovely insight. “Reminds me of the recent quote by Ethan Hawke. The one where who’s in love always wins. It doesn’t matter if you get your heart broken. You’re living. When you’re feeling, you’re alive. You know, the sun doesn’t care whether the grass appreciates its rays, right? It just keeps on shining.” Screenshot An Instagrammer points out the story isn’t just similar to The Notebook. It has many cinematic similarities. “Damn, grandpa’s life is three romance films combined. Before Sunrise, Past Lives, and The Notebook.” Upworthy had the absolute honor of chatting with Funaki’s daughter, Nana, who shared not only more thoughts from her father but photos (with translations) of some of his letters to Yoko. Funaki, who is now raising money to turn his coffee shop “The Lucky Boots” into a “guesthouse cafe,” also acknowledged the number of people who found his story beautifully similar to the aforementioned film starring Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams. “I received many comments, and many of them wrote that my love story was similar to the American movie The Notebook. The movie was shot about 20 years ago, and mine was a story of 50 years ago. People saw the story and asked that they want me tell the whole story of my old love story. So I decided to tell you my old love story.” View this post on Instagram “That love never disappears” Nana also shared more of what Funaki wrote about his experience, in a rather poetic fashion. In part, he wrote: “Sometimes people ask me,‘Do you still think about her?’Not very often.Just once in a while.When I remember her…I don’t feel sad.I feel good.I don’t know why.Maybe,the love I had for her…still gives me strength. It’s like a vitamin.A love supplement. When you truly love someone…that love never disappears.It stays in your heart. Some people think…if love doesn’t last forever,it’s a waste.I don’t think so.Loving someone…is one of the most precious experiences in life.You can’t buy it.Not with any amount of money.It’s like buying a beautiful diamond ring.One day, you might lose the ring.But you never lose the love.It stays here.Forever. That’s why…I have never regretted loving her.Not even once.” The post Man tells a heart-wrenching story about lost love, and people are calling it a real-life ‘The Notebook’ appeared first on Upworthy.