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Kamehameha Day

Last Friday, June 11, was Kamehameha Day. Last year, I was just happy to get a day off of work. This year made a deeper impression on me. I was moved by the scene at the statue depicting this first king to unite the island under one rule. A crowd was gathered, watching firefighters in their cherry picker placing lei on the statue. Even though I wasn't too close, I could smell the flowers of the lei - there were so many of them.

I'm constantly impressed by the respect shown for history here - whenever I pass the statue of Queen Liliuokalani, the last monarch of Hawaii, there are flowers at her feet or in her hand, sometimes in a lei around her neck or head. Sometimes there is food placed at her feet. I see flowers at the base of the Kamehameha statue year-round. There are always lei around the neck of the statue of Duke Kahanamoku, the father of modern surfing and an Olympic swimmer.

I was trying to think of other states that celebrate the start of their entity - the entity that preceded their membership in the Union. That celebrate it as a state holiday. Thousands of flowers were strung and hung on a statue, and instead of striking me as a strange act of worshipping a statue, I recognized it as paying respect. A means of thanking those who came before and contributed to what we have today.

Sometimes I get scared by the attachment I'm developing to my life here. Add it to the list of places my heart is scattered.

Posted by Shokufeh at June 18, 2004 05:43 PM