Aloha Festival 2014...

last week I got my 2014 Aloha Festival

ribbon!

So exciting!  I love the theme this year because it has to 

do with the round-the-world voyage of Hokule'a

promoting aloha.

Aloha Festivals were started in 1946 as a way to promote Hawaiian culture.

It used to be that you could buy ribbons at 7/11 and lots of other places.

They came with a book that showed the discounts that were given if you

wore your ribbon.  Now you go online to see them.  I haven't really done

that yet.  

I love going to the parade in Waikiki in September.  They would film

the parade and on Thanksgiving day it was shown on the mainland as part 

of their parades.

Maluhia Honua

Angels...

we have a dear friend who is in hospice care.

She's been there longer than anyone  expected.

Every 10 days or so we go over to see her.

I went over to see her the other day and she was showing me

all of the Christmas decorations; flowers, mini-trees, poinsettias,

and handmade ornaments.

I'd just missed seeing her dear sister.  Her niece, is spending everyday and

night with her in what has become a home-away-from-home.

What an outpouring of unconditional love for this sweet, feisty angel.

we had home hospice care for my in-laws.

The hospice caregivers are true angels.

After my visit, I sat in my car and thought about all of these angels that

are among us, and how really lucky I am.

A Little Kindness...

this young gentleman was walking home and crossed 

the street, Punahou, he realized that he was almost

across and the little lady had barely gotten off the curb.

He went back to help her along by offering her his hand.

Someone in a car waiting for the light to change snapped

this photo and sent it to the local news station.  

(KGMB photo)

When he was interviewed on camera he explained that he wasn't

even thinking about it, he just did what he thought was right.

He's very shy and it seems a little embarrassed

by the attention the 500,000+ views the photo has gotten.

I was thinking about that little lady...

think of what it meant to her.

malama kupuna

Aloha Festival Parade 2011

This year's Aloha Festival Parade was just beautiful!

I went down right after hula and found a great parking spot in the park. 

I love this parade!

It used to be televised during the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade as part of

"Thanksgiving across America", but they stopped doing that.  It's really too bad to.

Everyone should have a chance to see these beautiful floats and the

groups that are so unique to Hawaii.

 Every island is represented by a Princess and her court that

are dressed in colors representing that island.  So beautiful.

 Our friend, Toni Lee, Chairwomen of the Parade.

Mahalo Toni and all the groups.  It was beautiful!

ALOHAmora, Harry Potter

12 years, 7 books, 8 movies and thousands of pages...

Harry Potter is coming to an end.

Over the years I've read every book at least twice and watched the movies countless times.

I was first drawn to these books out of  curiosity Why were all of these young kids

reading these huge books? After the first one, I was hooked.  I'd re-read the book

before the movie came out just to refresh my memory.  I remember watching the

first movie and thinking, "that's exactly what it's supposed to look like!"

So when "Deathly Hallows" was released, yes I was there in line to get my book.  I remember

walking into Barnes and Noble, Kahala Mall and having to sidestep around kids of all

ages sitting everywhere and reading that HUGE book.

I spent a whole weekend reading it, and as I got closer to the end, I didn't want it to end.

Over the years I'd always given the books away to librarys or friends.  "Deathly Hallows"

is still sitting in my drawer, I can't bear to give it away.

I'm excited that now my grandchildren are old enough to fall under Harry's spell.

There are people who have banned these books saying they had to do with witchcraft, dark magic.

Oh please, these are fiction stories!  Look at some great stories..."Wizard of Oz", "Narnia" or "Lord of

the Rings".  Aren't they also fiction/fantasy?

So to Harry and all of his friends, I say "Aloha"

and to J.K. Rowling I have to say "mahalo"

Service and Aloha

(thank you Heidi and your girls for letting me take a pic of you picking up rubbish)
A few weeks ago I spoke in Sacrament about service. Since then I've been thinking about service and it's importance. Since it's the beginning of a new year, everyone comes up with resolutions (myself included). In my post "New Years Thoughts", one of the things I mentioned was giving more service. Isn't part of the "Aloha Spirit" showing kindness to others?



"An act of service may seem so small, but to the person receiving it, it's huge", I said in my talk. In our church we're taught at a very early age to perform small acts of service, and this early training will carry throughout our lives.



There are tons of opportunities in our community for service; cleaning the Anahulu Stream, Beach cleanups, library service, tutoring, school volunteer, outreach programs, the list goes on.

What about just the small acts of kindness that could make someones day? Letting cars go in front of you on the highway, offering a neighbor a ride when it's raining, airport pick-up, etc.

These are all things that really are small, but could really "make" someones day.

Today, after I left school, I came across a friend and her two daughters picking up rubbish along the side of Haleiwa Beach Road. She told me that all the wind was blowing it across the street from the beach park. She and the girls were just walking along with their bags.

Let's all try to give a "little" service, that turns into something HUGE. Isn't that in the true spirit of ALOHA?

50 Reasons I love This Place...

In no particular order:

1. Rainbows (no rain, no rainbows)

2. Fresh Poke (The Poke Stop, yum)

3. Waikiki Beach

4. Fireworks (4th of July, New Years, Chinese New Year)

5. Early mornings

6. no traffic lights in the country

7. 50 mph speed limit

8. Alama Sisters

9. Bishop Museum

10. music

11. Waialua Ward

12. Bon Dances

13. Everyone is family (only state where everyone has 60 uncles and 45 aunties)

14. Plate lunches (2 scoops rice (brown), mac salad and meat...still the best!)

15. Kahuku Corn (drive all the way over there and then eat it all ourselves)

16. Grumbling (no Trader Joes, no In-N-Out, other stuff we don't have)

17. Luau! good times

18. kanikapila (usually done at #17)

19. Mangos from your neighbor

20. Slippers (cause of luau feet)

21. Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (will work to keep them safe)

22. Plastic Free Haleiwa

23. Honolulu Zoo

24. Clean air pretty much all the time (vog :(

25. UH Football, from the perfect season, Colt, June and the rebuilding, Go Warriors!

26. Christmas spirit EVERYWHERE here, hotels, markets, postoffice, gas stations, beach...

27. Plumeria, nothing like that smell

28. "Hawai'i Aloha"

29. Cheaper movies/free soda refills (come on mainland!)

30. clean, warm water

31. Waialua Elementary School, best small school

32. Paalakai Bakery and Market (butter rolls and best diet coke)

33. Kaiaka Beach (secret???!!!)

34. Downtown Honolulu (Town) hidden treasures like Merchant Street and Hawaii Theater

35. Liliha Bakery, yum cocopuffs

36. Preserving the past

37. Royal Hawaiian Band, funky, older, but good

38. Lei Day

39. Nostalgia (old hapa haole songs..."Waikiki" what can I say?)

40. 1 block rain showers

41. Waikiki Shell, sitting on mats on the grass under a full moon!

42. Trees, banyans in Kapiolani Park, rainbow shower trees on King Street, yellow shower tree

43. Rivalries: Punahou or Iolani, Leonards or Paalakai Bakery, Matsumotos or Aokis???

44. Hokulea, showing that the Polynesians did travel great distances

45. Dukes, still my favorite breakfast spot

46. Samoans and Samoan food...panepopo, to die for!

47. rear view mirror mahalos

48. Waialua Library, voted Best Small Town Library

49. Taking mainland guest around the island...the real LOST locations!

50. Aloha (isn't this what it's all about anyway?)