As I continue to try to learn more about Hawaiian traditions and philosophies of life, I came across the word ho’olana (pronounced ho-oh-lah-nah) meaning ‘a buoyant force’ or ‘hope’. I started to think about how I could put more  ho’olana in my day to day life, which with family obligations and work, can be incredibly stressful and at times,  and make me feel pretty defeated.

I started to think what a ‘buoyant force’  is…and I kept coming back to the same image in my head: an ocean wave…which as we have talked about before, can have an immense amount of  power. Like ho’olana, I want to be able to adapt with the ebb and flow of what my day brings…that ability to move with fluidity whether something good or something bad happens. This won’t be easy but I’m definitely a work in progress and I’m starting to remember that at the end of the day, I am strong…and I am ho’olana. 

How are you like ho’olana?

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