Been thinking a lot about Hawaii after traveling there for the first time. Hawaii reminds me of being super young going to my ate
@owelandst and Kuya Andrew’s wedding in the Philippines (love you and happy new year ate)… maybe it came to mind bc of the shared lineage of Pacific islandic beauty and systemic trauma? Both bear centuries old indelible scars of r*ped and pillaged resources, to put it gently, where Hawaiians were forced to reorganized, re-conceptualize themselves through the lens of western colonization. (Also maybe it’s that spam and rice thing too).
This historical tragedy (not unlike most south-east Asian countries) creates a super somber subtext to every place we visited, acknowledging that these islands were once battlegrounds, ports, graveyards, etc.
AND YET, the literal earthly wonders of Hawaii remain intact. Its acclaim is not merely a product of its crazy, wild, weird natural beauty, but of a profound ecological and human resilience. Despite the dark history, the vitality of the nature and the enduring spirit of the people (natives, first, second, third gen alike), persist as the primary reason these islands are regarded as some of the most extraordinary sanctuaries on Earth.
Anyway, here’s wonderwall (Cyril Pahinui)
