A Weekend of Lila in Hawaii
Being back in Kona these past two weeks, I’ve been reflecting on my time here a lot. When I moved to Hawaii back in 2022, I had this vision of how I thought my life here would look. I thought it’d immediately make new super cool island best friends who like to go on adventures. We’d all live in a beach house and watch the sunset and eat fresh fruit off the trees. I thought it was going to look just like my dream. And the reality is most of my time there did not look like that. It was a lot of adventure and beaches and sunsets and tropical fruits, sure. But it was also a lot of loneliness and isolation and work and reality. However, there was a weekend that was everything I imagined my Hawaii life to be. It was filled to the brim with Lila moments. I had always intended to write about it at the time, but also wanted to be sure I wasn’t living just to be able to post or write or share. I wanted to be living it just for the joy; just for the memory. As I reflect on that time now, I feel excited to paint the picture.
I had been the sole work-exchanger at my job for about a week at the time that Everett, Valeria, Grace, and Erin arrived. Given that I was out in a more rural part of the island, I was feeling some isolation after my previous friends I’d work with had left. I had also just been super lost about what I wanted after returning from Oahu and realizing I actually didn’t want to move there after all (my original intention). When these 4 people about my age showed up, I was ITCHIN for some social interaction. They brought some energy, sound, and laughter back to the big house. They were eager for adventure and quick to act on it.
In our time together, we were nonstop adventuring.
We stacked kayaks on a sedan so we could paddle the ocean and snorkel vibrant bays.
We ventured out on a night swim to watch the manta rays feed on plankton under blue light.
We snuck into a fancy hotel to star gaze from the bathwater temp pool.
We harvested fruit from the trees (Everett even climbed for his own coconut)
We laid on the cold kitchen tile floor for hours, laughing and sharing stories to distract us from the heat.
We carried surfboards over our heads just to not catch a wave.
We trekked lava fields to float in private natural pools.
We played cards on the beach after playing in the waves.
We jumped on tables as a mongoose scurried around the house.
We painted a house.
We perfected the imitation of lil John’s signature “oKaY”
We danced in a park at a silent disco.
And on our last night we took the best pizza on the island to a beach for sunset.
We laughed hard. We smiled big. My chest felt warm with the feeling of “Lila.”
It was everything I was looking for in my dream of moving to Hawaii. Overflowing with Lila and reminding me of all the reasons life is worth living, I’m forever grateful for those two weeks in August with my KMR Kooks.
A hui hou
