At The BON Dance

A  L  O  H  A !

Until one has loved an animal, a 

part of one’s soul remains unawakened.

Anatole France

“Our task must be to free ourselves…

by widening our circle of compassion 

to embrace all living creatures and 

the whole of nature and its beauty.” 

                   Albert Einstein

 Ran Into An Old Friend!

“Hallo, Rabbit,” he said, “is that you?”

"Let’s pretend it isn’t,” said Rabbit, 

“and see what happens.” 

                     A. A. Milne

Moon Rabbit Link

 Wonderful music! 

Thank You Ladies!

 Look at those Comfort Spirals!

Growth is a spiral process, 

doubling back on itself, 

reassessing and regrouping. 

            Julia Margaret Cameron

Spiral minds are harder to twist. 

 Kris Saknussemm

 ‘I felt it shelter to speak to you.’ 

                     Emily Dickinson

Okinawa (link) is a 'Blue Zone" (link)

where folks routinely live well

into great age. Now you know

some reasons: sociability,

laughs, keep moving,

DANCE!

Linking To

Monday Murals

World Tuesday 

The Good.Random.Fun.

 ><3 3=""> 

Thank YOU

for Dancing Here!

             Fondly, cloudia

Bon Dancing In Honolulu

A  L  O  H  A !

The story of Honolulu's Mo`ili`ili neighborhood 

is the history of modern Hawaii.

Japanese workers completing their

labor contracts on the plantations

stayed in Hawaii, moving into town

to start businesses and begin to

build a financial base for the family

[something denied slaves on the

USA continent - which is why we are

discussing reparations]

Ultimately, many settled in Mo`ili`ili

at the mouth of Manoa Valley

where the University of Hawaii

would come into being.

Notice the Burger King in the background/right

Many Japanese customs of food, language,

religion, and culture were preserved

among these Hawaii people. When 

tourists from Japan began to visit

the islands in large numbers, they 

found an old-fashioned Japanese community,

frozen in time in many ways, 

and altogether charming.

Japanese food and culture are a big

part of HAWAII and all Hawaii people.

Every Summer, Buddhist and Shinto

shrines and temples throughout

the islands host BON dances.

The Honolulu Fukushima Club folks

show up with their tower, drums and

flutes. Recorded music is also played.

Andagi, fried noodles, teri chicken, hot dogs

and mochi are on offer. Many dance in

Japanese clothing. 

At the BON dance,

we dance with our loved ones who

have passed. In Summer - BON season -

they are near. There are many stories

of dead loved one's being glimpsed among the

dancers, or making themselves known

in other ways. We all attend. 

One need not be ethnic Japanese. 
Old, young, and VERY old & young 
all dance the eternal dances together.

WWII Veterans, US ARMY:

See You Next Time!

⛩

Blessings Friend!
                                   cloudia

See the dog?

Old Friends Book Ends

A  L  O  H  A !

Walking on Saturday evening 
to meet friends, I crossed 
the Kalakaua Avenue bridge.

Around me, our pocket sized 
city of Honolulu

with all the hustle and excitement

anyone could wish for - but no more.

All confined, EMBRACED! between

the rolling Pacific surf and these

glorious, forested, tropical mountains.

I in cool shadow, beheld Awaawaloa

gleaming above in the last full rays of the sun.

I came to Honolulu as an

immigrant from the continent. 
Knowing nothing but 
full of attitude! 
Working the bars, 
as a cleaning lady, as a taxi driver,

taught me this town 'mango tree mailbox'

as the old taxi driving 'uncles' used to say.

Now it is me: I know what used to be there,

 and the name before that. Through hard work, and love, and refusing to leave, 

I made this my town. Now

I am a holder of memory and culture here.

A Kupuna, a 'senior'.

I love this man's native Hawaiian features!

Being an older person here

is very different that what I

saw in my California sojourn.

Here we mix all ages, we never stop

singing, performing, telling dirty jokes,

dancing hula, and holding raffles for

some charity. Saturday night we sent off

an old friend of decades, Gladys, to live

in California with family. 

It's too common a story here. 
Folks built their whole life

and memories in the islands, 
contributed MUCH as Gladys has 
done more than most, yet 
cannot afford to remain as seniors.

I am a VERY lucky duck

that managed to return!

We honor them,

 and we do not spare

the emotion!

Gladys spoke what was on her mind,

surrounded by those she has loved.

 and been loved by for decades

Remember that the most 

valuable antiques are 

dear old friends.      

       H. Jackson Brown

Linking To

Good Random Fun

ꡤꡤꡤꡤꡤꡤꡤꡤꡤꡤꡤꡤꡤꡟ

Glad YOU

are my friend!

            Warmly, cloudia

Aloha `Oe

G did great in his first

concert on Saturday too!

Hawaii Photo of the Day

A  L  O  H  A !

Kamehameha Day!

   A  L  O  H  A ! 

Today we respect

the one who

united Hawaii into

one Kingdom.

Kamehameha The Great

'Napoleon of the Pacific'

𓁙

Link

22 Seconds Long Only

Hawaii Photo of the Day

A  L  O  H  A !

Hawaii Photo of the Day

A  L  O  H  A !

Don't Be Koi

Hawaii Music Video of the Day

Hawaii Photo of Christmas Eve

A  L  O  H  A !

Linking to 

SkyWatch

The Good Stuff:

The Real Hawaii

Father of the Aloha Shirt

Ellery J. Chun gave the aloha shirt to the world.

Although he first created aloha shirts in 1931, 

it was in 1936 he introduced the "Aloha Shirt"

 label to the distinctively bright, colorful

 Hawaiian attire. The term and 

the style caught on, 

and countless clothing manufacturers 

followed suit.

Chun first sold aloha shirts -

- originally inspired by 

palaka garments of plantation workers 

and silk shirts 

of high school classmates 

sewn from leftover kimono 

material by Japanese housekeepers -- 

at the family store, which he renamed 

King-Smith Clothiers, 36 N. King St.

The Honolulu native graduated from Punahou 

[ Like president Obama] in 1927 and majored in 

economics at Yale, class of 1931.

By 1933, he began to produce 

ready-to-wear patterns

 from cloth imported from 

the U.S. mainland, Japan, 

China and Tahiti. Surfers 

and beachboys snapped up 

the bold, breezy styles, 

and visiting Hollywood celebrities

 and other rich and famous ones 

began sailing home to 

display the new fashions.

In 1991, the state Senate 

honored Chun for creating

 the aloha shirt, on the 60th anniversary 

of his landmark contribution to distinctive

 Hawaiian apparel and the state of Hawaii.

Hawaii Photo of the Day

A  L  O  H  A !

POKAI  Bay  OAHU USA

"The bay was named for 

Hawaiian chief Pokai who

 brought the first coconut trees 

to the islands of Hawaii."


LINK

3 Signs

A  L  O  H  A !

Hawaii still loves LONGS,

still remembers our

ancient land divisions:

Ahupua`a,

names things in 

Hawaiian Language:

Hale Pawa`a.

Linking to

Signs, Signs

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(='.'=)

(")_('')

Thank You!

                             cloudia

World Wide Wishes

A  L  O  H  A !

" Real love is 

a permanently 

self-enlarging 

experience. " 

                  M. Scott Peck

“ We need to interact with

 like-minded people

 throughout the world 

to establish the new

 intellectual order 

which will be the

salvation of mankind. ”

                    Terence McKenna

" Feedback is the 

breakfast of champions. "

                       Ken Blanchard

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(' ^ ')
 (/Thanks\)

(") (")

Thank You!

                  Fondly, cloudia