Sometimes a change in perspective is all we need to remind ourselves how lucky we are.
A summer road trip, even just a day trip, can give us a breath of fresh air. Recently some good friends of mine from Wisconsin came to visit.
Seeing the islands through their eyes gave me a fresh perspective, reminding me how lucky I am to "Live in Hawai'i".
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| It's always windy at the Pali Lookout |
It was fun to share one of the best beaches in all of Hawaii, Bellows Beach, with them. Now they know why, the combined sounds of the surf & trade winds make phone conversations at the beach difficult.
They brought along some fun things to share with us too: wine from the Wollersheim Winery, salted caramels from Wisconsin, and one of the silliest, most fun games I've played in years: TENZI.
At first glance, TENZI looks like a dumb dice game; and honestly, it is kind of a dumb dice game. It's also one of the most fun games I've played in years!
Yes I live in Hawaii. Yes, I love my work. Yes, I have a happy home life. But, I had lapsed into a life filled with work, and lacking in fun.
I had forgotten how to have fun. This might sound odd, but I had even asked my coach to help me remember how to have fun. I couldn't think of anything "just plain fun" to do.
Yes, painting is fun, and I love to paint. And it's my job.
TENZI is pure, silly fun! My friend Kit is an expert at having silly FUN; her energy is a big reason that we laughed until we wheezed.
The game begins with everyone having ten dice. Someone says, "Go." Then everyone rolls and rolls their dice as fast as they can until someone gets all their dice on the same number. It's a fun, fast frenzy.
Kit gave me the game, and said that the next time we rolled a "3" we had to say "whoop, whoop, whoop" for each "3" that we rolled. Soon we were all literally "whooping it up" and laughing our heads off.
That is when I remembered what fun feels like!
Fun is laughing and playing with friends. It's being silly, and "giggly", and ridiculous.
Fun is completely forgetting about all of the serious things that have been filling our mind, and taking more deep breaths between the peels of laughter bubbling up from within.
I wish for you even MORE FUN!
Oh! There's a TENZI app for the iPhone. Fun, Fun, Fun!
Previously an oil painter, Patrice learned the joys of watercolor upon her arrival in Honolulu in June 2000. She has been painting full time ever since. It is her intention to live her "Real Life" creatively, from the inside out; and to inspire others -- through her paintings, 
Patrice Federspiel