I had an imaginary friend when I was growing up.  His name was Alexander McFinney McSmith.  He went most places with me.  He didn’t eat much.  And….. he hardly ever let me get a word in edgewise. But we were great pals.

I liked Alexander McFinney McSmith. I’m not sure why he left.

The last time I saw him was at King’s Island.  You had to be taller than the “Scooby Doo Sign” to ride on the Spinning Tea Cups. I was.  Alexander McFinney McSmith wasn’t.

When I got off the ride…. he was gone.  I never saw him again.

“To bring anything into your life, imagine that it’s already there.” – Richard Bach

“We are what we imagine ourselves to be.” – Kurt Vonnegut

“To imagine is everything.  To know is nothing at all.” – Anatole France

There is that age old question.  What is love?

I am not sure that there are adequate words to describe it.  Poets have tried.  Great writers, and philosophers have given it definitions.  Painters have attempted to give it a face.

Yet I think all of those fall slightly short.  Because “love” for each one of us, is slightly different.  And what may feel like “love” to one person, may be quite different from the next.

If we are lucky enough, we know it for ourselves.  It is an unmistakable feeling.  A resplendent feeling.

Love comes in different forms to.  It could be the ultimate love of our spouse… our soulmate… our heart song.

We can know great love from friends… and family.

If we are fortunate enough, we love our fathers and our mothers and our children…. and they love us. Without conditions.

In the way of love, I have to say, that I have truly been blessed.  For all around me… those closest and nearest to me… are quite possibly the best people on the face of this earth. The dearest.

And you…. probably feel the same magnitude and significance … about the ones you love.

“The greatest gift is a portion of thyself.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Things in life are all about how you look at them, really.

Our perceptions are based on our experience.  What we already know affects everything that will come before us in future events.

But sometimes.

Yes THOSE times.

When you see something one way.  And then you wait a few minutes, or hours, days…. or even years.   And that same thing looks completely different.

These two photos were shot, by the same person…. moi….. from the exact same location.  Same camera.    Yet, each with a slightly different perspective, and each with a different amount of magnification.  And of course, at different times during the day.

And the outcome.  Completely unique.

I think this analogy is indicative of life.   One minute this way.  And the next minute that.

“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle.” – Plato

Perhaps we just need to be aware.  To continue to look.  And watch.  And learn.

Some nights, I think…. in my little busy brain…. there is a lot to be said here.  And so I write.

And some nights, I don’t know anything for certain.

Nope. Tonight, there is not too much I know for sure….. on this blue ball of ours.
Well……. I DO know the blue ball is spinning.  Through space.

And hence, so are we.  Yes.  We truly are.

So just remember… as you think you might be standing still… you are actually moving at thousands and thousands miles per hour.  If something happens to come your way while all this spinning is occurring…. try to remember … to duck.

“If you wait to do everything until you’re sure it’s right, you’ll probably never do much of anything.” – Win Borden

I love animals.  This is absolutely no secret to anyone.  In fact, I suppose some of my friends think I am slightly loopy about my preponderance concerning the connection between the animal world and humans.

Of course I love my dogs.  But….. I have felt an intuitive association with many different animals, since I was a child.

I think every kid rescues the injured bird, or mouse, and has aspirations of becoming a Veterinarian one day.  I did this too.  But with me, it wasn’t so much about “healing” them… as it was “recognizing” that they are little beings on this planet too.  Or big beings on this planet, depending on the animal.  I have sympathized with them, cried about them, taking great joy from the presence, sat quietly with them….. and it goes on and on, really.

Sometimes, I will learn a little fact about an animal, and self-associate.  I’ll  think…. “Holy smokes.  I am sort of like a Tunisian Grasshopper.”  …. or …. whatever the case may be.

So tonight I read some information…. and found more similarities.

For one little example ….  Moles have to eat every few hours or will starve to death.   Yes.  In that way, I am mole. 

Another.  The Pileated Woodpecker is about the size of a crow…. and…. it pecks an average of about 12,000 times per day.  Now…. that bird can peck away at about 20 times in one second.  I tend to exhibit this type of behavior.    Much like jamming the front of my head into the trunk of a tree,  again and again and again.

Here is another.  Elephants are not really afraid of mice.  I am not really afraid of mice.  In fact, I think they are extremely cute.

Squirrels have thumbs.  They are born in the early spring.  During winter storms, or severe cold, the squirrel may not leave the nest for days.  Me too. Me too. Me too.

Orangutans love fruit.  A lot.   I am like an Orangutan in that way. 

We could do this all night.

But back to the topic at hand.  I truly believe animals think, and feel.  I’ve seen it with my own eyes, and these observations always touch my heart.

So, I will keep on being a squirrel, and a monkey, and a fish…. in my own little ways.  It reminds me about the responsibility I have as being a part of this planet. For I am merely one of the inhabitants here.  And we…. all of us…. are  sharing the same ground,  the same water,  the air and the sun.

Yep. Here we are.  Time for me to go bark at the moon.

“Das Glück ist das einzige, das sich verdoppelt, wenn man es teilt.”  – Albert Schweitzer

“Happiness is the only thing that doubles when you share it.”

The cool thing about Hawaii is that it is out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.  Hawaii is the most isolated population center on the face of the earth. This State is 2,390 miles from California; 3,850 miles from Japan; 4,900 miles from China; and 5,280 miles from the Philippines. Specifically, it is 4507 miles from Ohio.  Yes.  Paradise.

The not-so-cool thing about Hawaii is that it is out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.  It is 4507 miles from Ohio.

Where is the dude from Star Trek when you need him?  Beam me up Scotty…. dang it… and do it right now.

And sooooo….. …. here we are….. after a long journey….  back in Ohio….

Returned to the “Every Day” of it all.

Greeted by the rain and the grayest of skies.  At the same time…. we were greeted by a different kind of gray.  The furry kind.

And…. that…. to me…. is all a part of HOME.  Truly …. is the warmest place in the world.

“Be grateful for the home you have, knowing that at this moment, all you have is all you need.” – Sarah Ban Breathnach

If there is a place on earth that has paradise written all over it…. I’d have to say it is Hawaii.   What a wonder that island is.  Such diversity.  So much beauty…. and intrigue.

I feel so glad to have been there.  Truly grateful to the  powers of heavens and earth for affording us such a place.  It touched my heart in a soft and affecting way.

I am especially thankful that I could experience such a place with the ones I love.

Mahalo.

Aloha.

“The bird of paradise alights only upon the hand that does not grasp” – John Berry

When you spend a fun day at the beach in Hawaii, it can look like a lot of different things.  But one thing is for sure… taking a long swim in the ocean is a tremendously good feeling.  I think the water is saltier here too.  My salt-loving self really appreciates that!

Yet when you are lying on the beach, you think of a lot of things. Like the things details you have learned about this new and different land.

Each of the eight islands here, has it own little nuances, and secrets, and history.

So…. with that said… some fun Big Island Facts.

The Big Island is Hawaii’s largest at 4,038 square miles. It is twice the size of all other Hawaiian Islands when you smoosh them all together.  All of Hawaii though… combined…. is really only about the size of Connecticut.

The largest contiguous ranch, in the United States, is in here. The Parker Ranch near Kamuela has about 480,000 acres of land.  Mostly cows…. and goats.

Kilauea volcano is the world’s most active.  Seriously.

Mauna Kea is the tallest mountain in the world (measured from its base at the ocean floor).  I am not sure who takes these measurements.

The island houses the world’s biggest telescope and more scientific observatories in one place than anywhere else in the world.  This does not surprise me.  The starry night sky…. is SO dang starry.

The island is the worldwide leader in harvesting macadamia nuts and orchids.  This is the only state that produces coffee.  I have had the nuts.  Yum.  Had the Kona Coffee too.  Double Yum.  I don’t know if I’ve seen the orchids or not.  But there have been lots of gorgeous flowers.

Check this… Once used as a target by the U.S. Navy and Air Force…..  the services are cleaning up unexploded shells. No one is allowed to go ashore without permission.  I’ve seen signs of this.  Actual signs like the one below.

And finally tonight…..The word Hawaii is from the Proto-Polynesian hawaiki, meaning “place of the gods”.  I am certain of this one.  Quite certain.

Whale watching can be a lot like “Choppy Water Watching”…. yet today…. we got lucky.  We took a boat out and kept our eyes on the horizon.  The Whale Watch.  As it turns out, we saw several.  Some of them were pretty close.  What a munificence to see these amazing creatures break the surface of their world, and come to our world above.

Later in the day, I enjoyed some of the artwork here in our gardens and walkways.  The history and culture here are truly incredible.  So many stories, which are intriguing… and steeped in tradition.

We snorkeled a bit.  And took in the final warming rays of the day.

Tonight, we talked about Algebraic Equations in Figure Skating.

Oh my holy smackerels.  Another day of incredible gifts….. here in Hawaii.

“A wonderful gift may not be wrapped as you expect.”
― Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Tree hugging has taken on an entirely different meaning for me.  Literally.

You know.  Not so very long ago, I couldn’t stand on a small step ladder without getting a case of the woozies.  If I were in a tall building, and looked out a window, I would get a pluck of the old Vertigo.

And today.  I was like some little crazy Ewok.

Oh yes we did.  We zip lined.  For more than three hours.  In the wind and rain.  In the tree tops of a forest in Hawaii.   Heaven only knows how high up we were in the sky.  Again, I reiterate.  We were in the dang tree tops… that is for Holy-Canoli sure.  Like the Swiss-Dang-Family-Robinson.  Our longest run was 1,150 ft  between platforms.  Yowza.  It was SO MUCH FUN!

We learned how to repel.  We traversed over swinging bridges… which in turn… hung over the gullies where King Kamehameha once traipsed.  We saw a wall he built.  Albeit, we viewed it from high above… but… by golly… we saw it.  We zagged.  We flipped. We dipped.  We zipped.

The pictures truly don’t do it justice.

But there were were.  Up through the atmosphere.  Up where the air is clear.   We did more than fly a kite.  We flew ourselves.  And it was good.

Andy and Mikoa were our trusty guides.  We learned all sorts of things about Hawaii.  We also learned all sorts of things about zip lining.  And trust.  And again…. it was good.

“Love all.  Trust a few.” – William Shakespeare