Lawelawe malie ka Wai'opua . . .

Lawelawe mālie ka Wai'ōpua. The Wai'ōpua breeze handles gently. Said of one whose ways are gentle and easy going or of one who is very careful in handling anything. This ōlelo no'eau came at the perfect time for me. It is such an important reminder to be more patient, gentle, easy going and careful. Sometimes when we have a decision to make we feel rushed, pressured to make a decision. At times, that pressure leads to the wrong decision or a careless decision. We are faced with decisions daily. Some decisions are big ones. What we decide to do or say will have a lasting impact on our life and even the lives of others. This proverb reminds us to be like the Wai'ōpua breeze. Be gentle, think things through, take the time you need before making a decision. Pule, ponder, even ask for advice if needed. Now this can also apply to how we choose to react in various situations. I was reading something by Stephen Covey the other day called the 90/10 rule. This rule tells us that we have absolutely no control over 10% of what happens to us. We can't control other people's actions. We can't control the red lights as we're rushing to work. We can't control the fact that the tire went flat on the car, but we can control how we react in each of these situations. Will be like the Wai'ōpua wind, gentle and careful or will we pahū, explode like the Kaua'ula wind of Lāhaina. I personally need to work on being like the Wai'ōpua, more gentle, patient, thoughtfull in my reactions and my words. That's may pahuhopu, my goal this week. How lucky we have the wisdom of our kūpuna to help us teach us and help us grow.

Aloha nō, a hui hou . . .
Luana