Views from Paradise...

The title kinda speaks for itself but yea, in case you're having difficulty reading it, it's essentially a post about the beauty known as Hawaii. When most people think about Hawaii, the typical response is 'an exotic land' complete with 'tiki torches, people dressed in leafy clothing and people saying 'Aloha' a lot. Well, that's pretty far from the truth.

To each his/her own but to me, the islands possess something far greater. They are a place of refuge for me and my family. Growing up, my mother and father were hard working parents and my mom would travel to Hawaii EACH AND EVERY WEEK to go for a job. Yes, that's commuting from CA --> HI on a weekly basis. During the summer, my dad would send my brother and I to the islands where we were enrolled @ Punahou and could be with mom again. As you can imagine, those times were precious to us all and all the more sweeter when my dad could come out and join us.

And now, years later, it's amazing to believe that - as the line goes - 'I found myself' on the rock [i.e. Oahu]. I found the gift of fitness and gab. I found something I would never have dreamed of: a life. A life filled with: my buddhist church [going there this AM], my running coach and buddies, my cycling friends and mentor, vegan restaurants and lets not forget, Down To Earth Grocery store - the home of the gluten free rice crust pesto pizza! bam! 2 years ago, I contemplated if I could be athletic or not. 2 years ago I saw people on magazine covers and wondered if I could ever....

2 years later, we know that answer. And thus, this post is dedicated to the islands and everyone here who helped me out to where I'm at today....

Mahalo nui loa Hawaii