Musing

[written & published at Kamaole Sands, Kihei, Maui]

Maui weather today: isolated showers this afternoon, highs around 81 at the shore, SW winds up to 10 mph, chance of rain 20%; attached picture (scroll down) of West Maui Mountains (2 of them anyway) taken from roadside as the sun was going down when I drove to Lahaina for dinner yesterday

yesterday was ‘newsletter work day’ for me so some relief was required; first a long walk on the Kam beaches (Kamaole I, II, III and Charley Young Beach) amid Sunday afternoon crowds – tourists + locals getting their kids out to build sand castles before a picnic on the beach

as afternoon sun broke through I spent an hour or so working on my tan at a quieter beach

last year – sitting on a beach, I began a book ‘The Spontaneous Fulfillment of Desire’ by Deepak Chopra; on returning home I set it aside . . looked at it a few times but never picked it up with any focus until I returned here – that seemed a fitting way to finish it – and yesterday I did; I am not so sure I got anything special out of the wait, but it seemed like this was a book I should read on a beach, one that I should read HERE on a beach, the same beach; symbolism was not my concern but the surroundings and the mood it evoked were - a good choice I think, a good read that provoked lots of thinking and a better understanding of self . . or maybe just a better perspective on beaches

when I first came to Maui (6 yrs ago I think it was) my reaction after 40 minutes was ‘I want to live here’; at that point I had no sense of its magic, its ‘centre of the universe’ feel, the mood it invokes or its many pleasures; nonetheless its pull was strong, immediate and clear

recently I've found a much more centered feeling for myself; the ‘centre of the universe’
feeling is something I could probably enjoy in many places the world over, but for now I'll
keep thinking of this as the home I haven't moved to yet . . . . so the thought will just have to do

the ‘sun in my eyes’ drive to Lahaina for dinner with DLC was as enjoyable as a 2 lane ‘emergency stopping only’ twisting turning road can be . . but worth the trip; lovely meal, lovely company, lovely town followed by a drive back under a clear moonless sky . . . stars seem so much closer here, a place where city glare is a thousand miles away

this morning's walk . . only the Labrador and his walker were out in front of me, otherwise
the carvings of the outgoing tide left me a fresh landscape to imprint; I caught up to
Honey-Bear which is a peculiar name for a black dog, but it is fitting for that bear-like
appearance

one walker stood out this morning; I’ve seen him each day near the Fairmont end of my walk . . most likely a resident of one of those multi-million dollar condos; he is mid to late 80’s, he walks with a cane; a big man who walks with an easy gait, his casual clothes indicate high quality and good taste – an elderly gentle man image if there ever was one; his Bose headset hooked to an I-pod cranked up loud enough I could sound but not make out the tunes . . but watching him ‘walk to his music’ felt good as it appeared to give him some lightness in his steps . . maybe he should meet Honey-Bear

I wonder if I will be doing that 30 years from now with a dog and/or a two legged companion, or alone like him

I see lots of people here who look lonely; some are alone, some not

I see lots of people here who look joyous; some are alone, some not . . but I am sure
those happy ones . . the alone ones who are not lonely, those solitary AND happy ones are not alone in their minds . . . . so the thought will just have to do

. . then again, alone is ok today, just not every day

I returned to my condo to re-schedule today’s
golf to another day, tasting some sweet
mango (spontaneous fulfillment of desire'), sipping great coffee; I think a drive
somewhere is in order . . . up-country or the volcano . . or not

sometimes we can get as much pleasure thinking about something special as we can by actually experiencing it . . . not exactly the same, but consider this . . if you want to enjoy the sweetness of that mango there will be times when the mango is not available . . so the thought will just have to do

Aloha

Mark Kolke
337,564

205.4