Living on a “news diet”

I’ve been on something of a “news diet” for the past few months. I think it’s the only diet I’ve successfully followed for any length of time. But it’s something that I really needed.

Before, I was reading a couple of online newspapers, watching the local news on TV, and seeing news stories show up on social media. The weight of everything going on in the world was pressing down on me, especially since I would hear the same news story multiple times.

I felt anxious and overwhelmed. I felt upset and angry.

And it’s okay to feel those things. They are not right or wrong – all of your feelings are valid. You feel what you feel, and it’s okay.

But after living through the pandemic and coming out the other side stressed and overworked, I knew I had to make a change for my own mental well-being.

I quietly made a deliberate choice to reduce the amount of news I was exposed to. I made a promise to myself to read news headlines and 10 minutes of social media every day.

So if it seemed that I didn’t know about things that were going on, I probably didn’t know.

A part of me felt guilty for not keeping up with the news. Was I becoming one of those people who ignore the suffering around me?

A bigger part of me felt relieved. I could focus on the people in my life and the things I could control at work. It made a big difference in how I felt getting up in the morning and being able to sleep at night.

If you are on a “news diet” or considering one, I want to remind you that there’s nothing wrong with taking care of your mental health. It’s not selfish. It’s not ignoring terrible things going on. It’s a coping strategy so that you can keep strong and resilient.

There is a lot of good in the world. You are one of the good things in the world. And we need you to be strong.

What activities and practices keep you strong? Who do you count on when things get rough? Why not reach out to thank them and tell them how important they are to you?

Still celebrating Earth Day 2024

I pass by my son’s bottle cap mural all the time, but the other day I really noticed it again. And that made me think about Earth Day.

When he was 10 years old, he created an up-cycling project with colored plastic bottle caps. He chose to create the message “THINK BIG”, which we glued to a plywood board. I love the idea of turning things we might usually throw away into something functional, beautiful, or inspirational!

Voting in the Plastic Free Hawai’i School Mural Contest ended on April 20 and Earth Day 2024 was on April 22, but we can celebrate sustainability, ‘āina, and our connection to ‘āina year-round.

Here are some up-coming activities and events you might be interested in:

April 25 (Thursday) is Kama’āina Thursday at Waimea Valley, where kama’āina can receive free admission from 12 pm to 3 pm. After you enjoy the botanical gardens and hike to the falls, be sure to stop by the Hale’iwa Farmer’s Market from 2 pm to 6 pm.

April 27 (Saturday) is a 3R Drive at Waialua High & Intermediate School from 9 am to 11 am. Reynolds Recycling will redeem aluminum cans, plastic bottles, glass bottles, steel and bi-metal cans.

April 27 (Saturday) is a Kaloko Inlet Restoration with 808 Cleanups. You can help remove invasive species, haul away debris, water and weed the native planting zones, and remove litter. RSVP on the 808 Cleanups App or email kimeonakane.808cleanups@gmail.com. Waiver required. Look for other cleanup opportunities, planned for almost every day of the week!

May 19 (Sunday) is a Wawamalu Beach Service Project from 9 am to 12 pm. Limited to 24 attendee/volunteers. Help return Wawamalu Beach to its native/natural state after years of off-road abuse and inattention. Natives planting, seed collection and sowing, as well as removal of invasive plants on tap. Personal pickaxes welcome and encouraged. Work gloves provided.

June 6-16 is Ho’oulu Lāhui: Regenerating Oceanica, the 13^th Annual Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture. It’s the world’s largest celebration of indigenous Pacific Islanders. The festival will showcase performing arts, heritage arts, and visual arts, as well as conferences, workshops, and panel discussions to enhance cultural understanding, sustainability, and the preservation of Pacific heritage.

How did you celebrate Earth Day? What small change can you make today to help Hawai’i?

Life lessons from watercolors

Last Saturday, my mom and I signed up for a “Sunset Watercolor Workshop” at the Hawai’i State Public Library, and it was so much fun! Paige Su, artist and owner of Poshiki (@poshiki), gave a demo with the watercolor scene, tips about using watercolors, and lots of encouragement.

Every seat at the tables was set up with a supply list, watercolor paintbrush size 8, #2 pencil, Magic Rub eraser, 6”x9” watercolor paper, an extra strip of watercolor paper for testing colors, a cup with water, and palette with five Koi watercolors in yellow, red, blue, brown, and purple.

We gathered around a table as Paige took us step-by-step through the painting, from drawing light lines and starting with the sky and clouds, to adding waves, sands, and a coconut tree. She showed us how to hold the brush and some blending techniques.

Life lessons from watercolors:

Set yourself up for success. Paige gave us everything we needed to complete our painting, neatly laid out. The table was covered with plastic in case of spills, there were extra paper towels, and there was a large bin so we could empty the used water. This setup gave us the freedom to be creative and focus on art. We didn’t have to worry about the details, because she put a lot of thought into the preparation.

Start with an inspiration piece. The sunset scene was just the starting point. Using the same paper, brushes, and colors, we each came up with something different and unique. In fact, Paige said that she painted multiple sample drawings for the workshop, and each came out differently.

Mistakes are okay, even welcome. Paige reminded us that watercolors are not perfect, and we don’t have to be perfect either. Unexpected colors or lines can make your artwork more interesting, just as chance meetings or making different choices can make life more interesting. It happened to me: I was trying to draw a “clean” line for the horizon, but I didn’t let the paper dry enough, and the colors blended together. So I painted mountains over the blended colors, and they look like they were supposed to be there all along.

Blending can be beautiful. In watercolors, things don’t have to be all one color. Beautiful things happen when we let colors blend together, when we create gradients, when we use water to soften colors. Life can be the same way. Often, things are not all good or all bad, all one thing or another, such as a blending of cultures or a melding of traditions.

Be proud of what you create. At the end, Paige offered us a pen to sign our watercolors. She wanted us to be proud of what we created. Often, we only see the “mistakes” in what we do. Instead of starting to list all the problems with our creation, we can try to see our creations as other people see them and simply say, “thank you.”

Have you painted with watercolors? What do you like about watercolors? And what have you learned from art?

The sun is still there

In Hawai’i, it was a beautiful morning, like any other beautiful morning with partly-cloudy skies. The sun tinted the clouds a gorgeous orange-pink color when I looked in my rearview mirror.

On April 8, 2024, people in 15 US states within “the path of totality” experienced a very different morning – a solar eclipse, when the moon completely eclipsed the sun. From photos I saw, some places were completely dark, as if it were night, while other places seemed to be in an eerie twilight.

As I was driving to work, this reminded me that people can experience the same event and have very different perceptions of it and reactions to it. And their perceptions and reactions are all equally valid. It is their truth.

Some people may feel fear about the darkness or awe about an incredible event, or both at once. Some people may feel profoundly changed, and others may notice it and move on, unaffected.

Some people may have traveled long distances to be able to experience a once-in-a-lifetime event, and other people may be content to read about it or watch it on video.

Your reactions to events, your feelings about things that happen to you or around you, are valid because they are yours. They don’t have to be the same as everyone else’s. They are not good or bad, right or wrong. They are your reactions, your feelings, your emotions.

We may think that the people closest to us are more likely to have the same experiences and react in the same way. It may be true. It’s okay if it’s not true.

I hope that they can respect your feelings and you can respect their feelings.

And I just wanted to remind you that even if you couldn’t see the sun during the eclipse, whether the sun was behind the moon or behind the clouds or on the other side of the world, the sun is still there.

What was your experience of the solar eclipse? How did it make you feel?

Books are the wings of your imagination

Imagination is the key to International Children’s Book Day 2024, which is celebrated on or around Hans Christian Andersen’s birthday on April 2. It’s all about inspiring a love of reading and to call attention to children’s books. #ICBD2024

This year’s theme, “Cross the Seas on the Wings of your Imagination,” was chosen by The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) in Japan (JBBY). Nana Furiya, an international-minded Japanese artist living in Slovakia, created a beautiful poster; and Eiko Kadono, a prominent Japanese author and winner of the 2018 HC Andersen Award for writing, composed a letter to the children of the world. Here are her opening words:

Stories travel, riding on wings,

Longing to hear the joyful beat of your heart.

I’m a traveling story. I fly anywhere.

On wings of wind, or wings of waves, or sometimes on tiny wings of sand. Of course, I also ride the wings of migratory birds. And even those of jet planes.

I sit beside you. Opening the pages, I tell you a story, the one you want to hear.

Would you like a strange and wondrous story?

Or how about a sad one, a scary one, or a funny one?

If you don’t feel like listening right now, that’s fine too. But I know someday you will. When you do, just call out, “Traveling story, come. Sit beside me!”

And I’ll fly right there.

When I was young, some of my favorite books were Norman Bridwell’s “Clifford the Big Red Dog,” about accepting people as they are; and Frances Hodgson Burnett’s “The Secret Garden,” about how a garden can help people grow. My favorite Disney princess story was “Beauty and the Beast” because Belle loves books!

I enjoyed stories of the demigod Maui, who captured the sun so that his mother could finish her work and who went fishing and hooked the Hawaiian Islands; and Momotaro, the Peach Boy who vanquished ogres.

And if you’re interested in comic books with Hawaiian superheroes, check out Mana Comics!

What are your favorite children’s books? What books spark your imagination? Who will you read with today?