This is a cross-post from dancingfools.org.

Hawaii’s Plantation Village
Waipahu, Hawaii
June 7, 2008, 6:00 - 10:00 p.m

The Dancing Fools gathered for the first bon dance of 2008 at Hawaii’s Plantation Village in Waipahu. It seems only appropriate to kick off the season at such a historic locale. After all, it was the plantations that brought the first Japanese immigrants to Hawaii, bringing with them the culture of their homeland, traditions that endure until today and bon dances being one of them.

Here are some scenes from the bon dance:

Mike enjoys the bon dances by capturing the scene in his art. This time last year, he made the line drawing of this plantation train. This year, he put the finishing touches on the piece with watercolors.

A group photo of half of the bon dance posse

Ryan, Shari, and Donna

Renee, graciously brought Happy Hearts Mochi to share with us. There was not one mochi left by the time we were done! Thank you, Renee!

A great time was had by all! See you at the next one!

Our church sponsored a “Compassion Sunday” today and dedicated the entire service to educating the congregation about the needs of impoverished children around the world. Pastor Tim recently returned from an eye-opening and life-changing trip to the Philippines where he was able to see firsthand the dire conditions that so many families are living under.

“He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has done.” (Proverbs 19:17, NIV)

It’s so easy to get caught up in our own comfortable lives, but just across the ocean, there are millions of children in need. It can be an overwhelming thought, but what about making a difference in the life of one child — for a mere $32 a month? Sure, we can all do that.

“He who gives to the poor will lack nothing, but he who closes his eyes to them receives many curses.” (Proverbs 28:27, NIV)

For a moment, I wondered if I should pick up a sponsorship packet. After all, Baby Champuru is on the way and I was planning to stay out of work for as long as our finances would allow. It was never our intention to have a baby only to depend completely on my parents or in-laws to raise our child. But yet, the reality of raising a family on a single income in Hawaii is nearly impossible. At the same time, would $32 break our budget? Probably not. But imagine the difference that it could make for the sponsored child: HUGE.

I decided to take the step of faith and I picked up the packet for an eight-year-old boy from the Philippines named Melvin. His mother is raising him as a single parent, and while I don’t know the rest of the story, I know that it must be tough to make ends meet. With our commitment to sponsor Melvin, I know that he’ll have the hope for a brighter future.

If you’re interested in learning more about child sponsorship, visit Compassion International and make a difference in the life of a child for only $32/month.

Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

(Matthew 25:34-40, NIV)

I’m sure this is old news to regular patrons of the local library, but for the rest of us who normally get our reading material from the likes of Borders and Barnes & Noble, you’d be surprised to see just how much the Hawaii public library system has changed. It’s been years since I last darkened the doorway of a library. (Remember those card files using the Dewey Decimal System? Yeah.) But, let me preface this by saying that this has nothing to do with books.

Today’s mission was to find a Frank Delima DVD for a project at work. (Don’t ask.) Arnold, the library enthusiast did a search using their online catalog and found that the Salt Lake library was the only one with the DVD I needed, in stock. So, off to the library I went.

When I walked in to the library, it felt distant yet familiar. The morgue-like silence, the cool, completely dehumidified air, people speaking in hushed tones, the rustling of pages… I wanted to stay here forever. I think missed my calling. I should have been a librarian. But that’s totally off the topic here.

What I found was a treasure trove of DVD’s. It almost made me take my Blockbuster card out of my wallet and kick it to the curb: new releases, old classics, and *drum roll please* a martial arts section that would put Blockbuster to shame. (Seriously, Blockbuster, you call that a martial arts section? Talk about lame.)

Sure, I knew the library had DVD’s for rent, but I thought they only had a limited (and lame) selection of stuff that I’d never want to watch, even at the bargain rental cost of $1 for a 7-day rental. Boy, was I wrong. Apparently, in addition to the great selection of other film genres, martial arts is a specialty of the Salt Lake Library’s DVD section. I didn’t have time to browse, but I did notice that they even had a four-part instructional series on Shotokan karate, which is the art that I practice.

And, Bae Yong Joon fans, you are not to be left out. According to Arnold, who is the compendium of information, the McCully library specializes in Korean dramas.

So, dust off that library card and check it out. You might be surprised at what you find at your local public library.

A short videolog sharing scenes from today’s Chinese New Year festivities at the Chinese Cultural Center in Honolulu’s Chinatown.

[tags]Chinatown, Chinese New Year, Honolulu, Hawaii[/tags]

A dream in 2005, sparked by a simple question posed on HawaiiThreads, became reality through the generous support and donations from an online community.

“What do you want for Christmas?” was the question. Auntie Lynn’s response: “I wish for all the children of Mayor Wright Housing (MWH) to have a pair of rubber slippers so they won’t have to go barefoot.” That Christmas, her wish came true.

Christmas 2007 is fast approaching and Auntie Lynn wants to keep the MWH Slippah Project tradition going. Over $400 has already been donated and bloggers are helping spread the word about the drive. One blogger, known as Skeet, has even offered to match funds up to $100 above the amount she’s already given.

Every child should have the necessities, including footwear. Auntie Lynn and her many supporters are helping to ensure just that. Won’t you join us in helping make the wishes of the keiki (children) of MWH come true? Click here to donate. Donations of any size are appreciated — it only takes a couple of bucks to buy a pair of slippers, but it means so much to the child who receives it. Get your donation in before the end of November so Auntie Lynn can buy and distribute the slippers in time for Christmas.

Day 10 of 30