My Blessed Tropical Venture

I am presently, like at this moment, sitting in the lounge of the Seattle, SEA, Airport, less than an hour drive from my son and his family in Tacoma. So close yet so far.

I am returning home from a magical adventure on the island of Kauai where I was hosted by an incredible family. I knew that getting to Hawaii and Alaska probably would not include my car so I was fortunate to get a ticket at a great price as well as a travel voucher for volunteering to take a later flight, overbooked, PLUS the accommodations were essentially free. I was able to visit a Hindu Monastery, numerous beaches and eateries, meet a variety of people and interview four of those people. I’ll include a slideshow of the pictures below which will include pictures of interviewees.

Roni worked at a restaurant next to where I was staying. She is a salty soul with a lifetime of experience. I was struck by her advice to young people: Carefully observe everything around you because everything will have meaning as well as change meaning as the context of your life changes over the years.

Amanda is a shark diver, an artist-photographer, yoga instructor, massage therapist and bar tender. Our conversation was filled with moments of enlightenment and laughter. She has traveled, lived in so many places and done so many things in just a few years. I will let her interview tell her story because I would not know where to begin.

Scott is a retired professor who has been in Hawaii a long time. We stumbled across each other on a fairly remote beach and he filled us in on a whole lot of folklore and nuances that most touristy types miss out on. I found him to be totally charismatic, a teacher to his core. His hope for the world was EMPATY. I know you’ll find him as rustic and charming as I did. Watch forScott in Hawaii.

Finally Jessica shared her perspectives on happiness, our individual and collective responsibilities for facilitating and assuring ours and others’ positive experiences in live. She also gave some solid advice about marriage relationships based on her own experiences.

i will be forever grateful to my host and dearest Friend Katherine and her family for their generosity and patience in facilitating this adventure. My sense is that many of the photos will speak for themeselves.