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Waikiki Beach at Duke's Statue
before "Stay at Home" order for O'ahu
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Today is the first full day of "Stay at Home" on O'ahu. This means staying off the beaches and out of parks and restaurants. The order for all non-essential workers is meant to slow the spread of the coronavirus so healthcare personnel can keep pace with the rise in medical needs.
My first reaction was to subscribe to the late night talk show home editions to keep up my spirits. Last evening Stephen Colbert demonstrated how to change a flat bicycle tire. A relatively unremarkable event until he stated that what he learned at age 13, how to change a flat tire, was of use today. He then asked his virtual audience, "What did you learn at age 13 that is useful to you today?"
The question required a bit of thought and could easily lead a person down multiple rabbit holes while thinking back to such a young age. Where it led me was to my eighth grade cheerleading squad. As a student in a newly constructed school with a class of about 21 girls and boys, the teacher insisted that the squad must allow every girl in the class to participate as a cheerleader for sports events. This meant all or nothing. The lesson I learned then, that is useful today, is that everyone counts equally.
Here in Hawaii, that means 'Ohana, where everyone counts and no one is left behind . . . except when it comes to Spam during a hurricane watch - then you're on your own!
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| Hawaiian hibiscus in bloom yesterday! |
