In April the kids and I took a relaxing, wonderful, perfect Spring Break trip to visit my Grandma in Hawaii. Since all of us (besides the kids) had been vaccinated for Covid, we decided it was safe enough to visit again. We didn't know it at the time, but it would be our last visit with Tutu, and I couldn't be more grateful that we were able to get a little more time with her.
We spent most of our time at home and in the pool, but also ventured out to Zippy's and the Fun Factory at Kahala Mall and visited Kahala Beach. Aunty Michele took us all to Sea Life Park, and Aunt Annette joined us for a fun morning at Magic Island. We had many evening dinners with our Lau family, too. And we all got spoiled, but Henry especially was living his best life-- swimming in the pool all day long and playing with a neighbor friend's therapy dog when it came by for evening walks. Grandma would sit out front each evening while the walkers came by, and her neighbor, Pat, would roll over in his motorized wheelchair with his two dogs, Mr. Umi and Kami, in tow and stay for awhile to chat.
After Grandma passed away in May from surgical complications, I heard that Pat passed away just a couple months later. And while I know these deaths were not related, they remain interconnected in my mind in some way. They both so loved their evening talks, especially during the isolation of the pandemic. And maybe that's why we needed this trip so much. It's been a hard year, and it felt good to come "home" and be amongst family. Esther Nekota was a lot of things to a lot of people, but it seems like for all of us the common thread was the way she made us feel fully seen and unconditionally loved. And if that's not the greatest gift someone can offer, I don't know what is.
♡♡♡
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