Movin' On

Philly, DC, NYC, and now Boston. I've got friends moving "back east" in droves. Haven't been to Philadelphia since a school trip to see the Liberty Bell during childhood, but I love DC, I love NYC, and I love BAHstun. Maybe we'll get a chance to visit all of you at some point.

As for our own little moving adventure, it's been just about a year now since we arrived here on O'ahu. Despite some adjustment issues that came, in unexpected waves, during the first six months or so, we're settling in quite nicely now. We have friends here, and great neighbors. Our lives are, for the most part, peaceful and happy. We've even got a friend or two on the Big Island now for visits back and forth.

I'm taking another class that starts in a few weeks, and Kevin is busy with his music, spending more time with friends, and swimming and school...even girls...heh. He's not sure what happened over the summer (I am, he got taller and even cuter :), but all of a sudden, several girls at school are talking to him and that's boosted his self-esteem to no end. He still smiles a lot, and is still the same good-natured teddy-bear of a guy, but he's more confident now, even funny. It's very heartening.

And always, there's the island, the sea and the sky; constant yet ever-changing in the light. It's a haven of peace, truly. To be surrounded by such soul-opening beauty is wonderfully healing and inspires a sense of peace and contentment. There are normal stresses of life here, certainly, but I've never felt them melt away with quite the same evaporative ease as they do here. All it takes is a sunset, a rainbow, the scent of flowers on the air, a view from on high, a walk on the beach. And I can see the same reaction on other faces, too. Absorbing such natural loveliness visibly changes people; muscles relax, eyes blink slowly, soft smiles warm into being from the inside and light people up like tiki torches.

For the foreseeable future, Hawai'i is home.

For what it's worth, I wish all of you rolling stones wonderful new experiences and lots of new friends, and in some cases positive reconnections with family and old friends. If you have those um...waves of adjustment...I'll always be willing to lend an ear or a word of understanding. And certainly, KEEP IN TOUCH no matter how it's going!!

Hopefully, we can visit each other from time to time.

A hui hou...Aloha 'oe!