By Edit: 12/25/19
Anyone tl:dr and not feeling like reading the below emotional post of mine. Please know I will return to translating in later January 2020.
Dec. 4, 2019
I will be taking a break as this happened at my workplace. Please understand there may not be a chapter for the month of December. I need time to personally process what happened in my life.
I will be disabling comments for this post. If I do resume to translate, it may be next year January.
Edit: Dec 5, 2019
I woke up hoping that yesterday was a dream, a nightmare that was passing.
But I know that not to be true, the reality is that people’s lives were lost.
One of the victims was a fellow coworker, whom I’ve worked with on past occasions. Nice guy and a family man, his dad also works here, he’s one of the big bosses in another department.
I won’t mention my exact job description, just that I’m a metal worker for the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. Working on the structural side of things. I enjoy what it is I do, and take pride in maintaining & repairing ships.
I was at work yesterday, when the base went into lockdown & the base loudspeaker system declared an emergency. Dry dock #3 is where I mostly work. I think my initial reaction to it all was “Is this real?”
I’ve taken the Active shooter trainnings, the briefings, and stuff. They teach you to seek shelter (run/hide), and as a last result, fight for your safety or your coworkers safety. And so we do what it is we’ve been taught.
The roughest thing in that whole situation, is not knowing what to expect. You already know that gunshots have occurred, and you’re left to wonder who got hurt. Even if you’re safe, your mind immediately races to people you know, and you begin to wonder about their safety. With the press releasing their names, that further solidify’s that these are guys I wont meet again.
There is one survivor out of all of this, and I hope he makes a full recovery. I can only express my heartfelt condolences for all the victims families. Work has been shutdown for today, so the authorities can do their investigation, but tomorrow, normal work operations are set to continue. I’m sure our bosses may have some briefings for us and some answers, but I don’t know anymore, I don’t know what to think…
What’s causing me to rage is peoples ignorance & the media’s agenda to this tragedy. Turning what my coworkers and I experienced into something that is not. Speculating and spreading misinformation.
Honestly, I was born & raised in Hawaii. And was taught values like “Ha’aha’a” humility, “kuleana” responsibility and Aloha. Our State’s motto Ua Mau ke Ea o ka ʻĀina i ka Pono means “The life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness” In other words we are the caretakers of the land and its people, its community, and we will treat each other with love and respect.
I’ve grown from a Hawaii that embodied such values, to an Era where common courtesy is rare. People no longer understand one another, the community is divided, the Aloha spirit seems almost nonexistent.
I can ramble on and on and vent my frustrations, but I’ll just stop myself here.
Please be kind to each other, we can have different beliefs and still respect each other.
I want to say enjoy the holidays with sincerity, but right now that’s hard for me.
Cherish your life and be happy with your family & friends.
Edit: Dec. 6, 2019
Visited the area closest to the shooting to pay my respects.
E Hawaiʻi e kuʻu one hānau e
Kuʻu home kulaīwi nei
ʻOli nō au i nā pono lani ou
E Hawaiʻi, aloha ē
E hauʻoli e nā ʻōpio o Hawaiʻi nei
ʻOli ē! ʻOli ē!
Mai nā aheahe makani e pā mai nei
Mau ke aloha, no Hawaiʻi
E haʻi mai kou mau kini lani e
Kou mau kupa aloha, e Hawaiʻi
Nā mea ʻōlino kamahaʻo no luna mai
E Hawaiʻi aloha ē
E hauʻoli e nā ʻōpio o Hawaiʻi nei
ʻOli ē! ʻOli ē!
Mai nā aheahe makani e pā mai nei
Mau ke aloha, no Hawaiʻi
Nā ke Akua e mālama mai iā ʻoe
Kou mau kualono aloha nei
Kou mau kahawai ʻōlinolino mau
Kou mau māla pua nani ē
E hauʻoli e nā ʻōpio o Hawaiʻi nei
ʻOli ē! ʻOli ē!
Mai nā aheahe makani e pā mai nei
Mau ke aloha, no Hawaiʻi
