Posts Tagged ‘barack obama’
Obama and Hawaii: Color-Rich, Not Color-Blind
Diamond Head with the University of Hawaii in the Foreground -- Photo Taken 8 September 2004
Dot’s Thot: “Ua Mau Ke Ea O Ka Aina I Ka Pono” – The Life of the Land is Perpetuated in Righteousness — State Motto of Hawaii
President Obama grew uip in Hawaii, where I was born and raised. Different eras, different schools, etc., but one thing is for sure, Barack must have absorbed a number of inevitable truths you learn in the islands.
The one best thing: for all that people talk about being “color-blind”, I have always preferred the island way — “color-rich”. By this I mean that we acknowledge our differences and learn from them — we eat each other’s food, adopt each other’s holidays (the more the merrier), observe each others customs, and finally, we marry into each other’s families, and if not that, at least “marry into each other’s cultures”.
For my own extended family, the first generation all came from Okinawa over a hundred years ago, the second included some main Japan in-laws, the third included Okinawan, Japanese, Caucasian, Chinese, Laotian, and East Indian. The fourth generation, thus far, has added a black American and a white Australian. the fifth generation are babies yet and they are sure to enrich us further. Some people say, “Never insult any race, because someday, these will be your grandchildren.”
Thank you Hawaii for the spirit you gave us all. More than the sandy beaches and wonderful climate, thank you for the richness of the world and the generosity of the Hawaiian culture. Barack Obama must carry this in his bones, as do all of us who grew up there and that, in itself, gives me hope for the future.
Aloha to all, Dot
The Watch Worn by President Obama -- Click to Get One for Dad
