Monday, August 6, 2012

Mahalo

If you've read this blog before you know I get to travel for work.  This morning I left Oahu (the Hawaiian island where you'll find Waikiki Beach) and right now, I'm on Maui, staying at Napili Kai Beach Resort, listening to the waves crash against the shore right outside my balcony window.


On Oahu I stayed at The Kahala, a luxury property steeped in understated decadence.  It's where presidents stay, the Japanese Emperor, once Princess Di and only two months ago, the Dalai Lama.  As you walk from your room to the beach, dolphins play in the waters by your feet.
There are a few places around the world that are truly thought of as paradise.  You know, the kind of a tropical variety: islands embraced by a crystal blue sea, warm and soothing as apple pie, palm trees scattered about, sand that twinkles on your skin.  It's hard to say which of these destinations is the ultimate Eden, heaven on Earth, but on this trip I think I've got to fess up and admit that Hawaii might be it.

You see, on top of Hawaii's sheer beauty, it's culture, the many humpbacks leaping into the air on Maui during their breeding season, Hawaii's got the weather.  It's arguably the best in the world.  SoCal folks like to believe they've got it, thanks to all the sunshine, but Hawaii's got something on them: the trades.  The trade winds ensure that no matter where you are in Hawaii it is pretty much always the perfect temperature.  It's not so hot you have to jump in the pool every five seconds to cool down, and yet the sun blankets your body in that kind of warmth you feel as much in your heart as on your skin.
If you don't know already, Mahalo means thank you in Hawaiian.  If you've been reading this blog at all you know the word means a lot to me.  I've been to many places around the world because of some of the work I get to do and AT LEAST once on every trip there is a moment when I am so awestruck and utterly grateful for where I am, and what my senses are feasting on, that all I can do is say thank you over and over again in my head.  And no matter how many times I say it, it never feels like enough.  
I believe in the law of attraction but I'm never exactly sure how I attracted some of the travels (most of the travels) in my life.  I wind up in certain places and in the moment I stop and take in a breath.  And sometimes I ask myself questions.  Why I am here?  Why is this in front of me?  How did I get here?  Each destination, big or small, East, West, North or South is overflowing with divinity.  When I'm in front of something that makes me feel that, no matter where I am in the world, in those moments I feel such an intense sense of gratitude, but at the very same time a deep yearning fires me up.  Because I always wish in those moments that I could share this.  I wish I could package and ship the sun, the wilderness, the river, the grapes, that perfect bite, the mountain and the hills.  I wish I could put these things each into their own little packages, and with them the feeling that I get when I'm face to face with those things.
One of my most favourite daydreams is where I come into a bunch of money.  Then I call a travel agent, book rooms and first-class air, the works, for everyone in my life that I hold dear.  And off we go!  The destinations change.  Sometimes I dream I'm on smaller scale trips with a few people I love.  These past few days I've been dreaming of what it might be like to be able to take complete strangers on a journey.  Some, like single mothers and fathers, people working in the service industry who never get to experience certain levels of service themselves, I would send on extravagant, luxury vacations.  Others, people who are interested in seeing the world, would travel to far off lands to gain a little bit better understanding of how even though different people have different ways of being and living in the world, we are all still completely connected. Because there is nothing better in life, NOTHING, than those moments when you realize we are truly all one.
ALL OF US!

2 comments:

  1. Hello! I really enjoyed reading this lovely post! Amazing places, beautiful pictures and of course pretty young lady :)) Hawaii is on my list to go... Hehehe :) Well, I hope you had/having a wonderful time!! :)

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    1. Hi Evelyn! Thanks very much! You are too kind! Hawaii is a great destination and I would definitely recommend it on anyone's travel list. I often see your Instagram pics and love them and your style! Please keep in touch and thanks again for reading! :)

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