The Inspirations for my Blog theme...

Where do I even start? Okay don't ask me why I changed the theme of my blog, it was gonna be a place for me to vent and share and confess (LOL!) my true troubled ways of being a mom. But seeing this wonderful template background of yes, paradise, beaches, and people enjoying Hawaii (hello, where I live!) just made me think of tourists (so lame yeah?) and how lost they could be around Hawaii, and how much I love sharing all that Oahu has to offer. Okay, rest assured I am not trying to sell you anything or even push a product on you, I'm not making any money off of you going to my site (not yet, at least) but I am genuinely a people person and like to help others from getting lost when they first come to a place.

Speaking of lost, "LOST" the hit series is my favorite, I loved the first three or even four seasons but now I am lost as to where they are taking this story and probably will rekindle my love for the show after a season apart. I have a particular connection to "LOST" because it was also filmed in Hawaii, on Oahu, right in my backyard practically in the North Shore, how cool is that. My friends have even visited the Dharma sites in Haleiwa (they broke in! LOL!), I could point out all the scenes and where on Oahu the set went, I thought it was funny that they filmed Chinatown and made it look like it was Korea, Sun's and Jin's home. I have a bit of "LOST" craze inside of me, when it first came out (I was 2 years behind), I thought it was funny that we showed it to 3 married couple friends of ours and my sister and they were all hooked! The pilot and first couple of episodes of "LOST" were ingenious, it was mysterious and so scary with the sound of the monster in the trees.

"Lost in Paradise" bespeaks of my own personal conflict: I'm in paradise (Hawaii, right?) but I feel lost. I mean, we're on this island because we can't figure out if we want to live in the mainland (US) or live in Philippines (my Filipino idealism wants to live there and be close to my family), so we're stuck in the middle, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, perfectly situated to be non-stop flight away from either of them.

I would say this feeling of "lost-ness" (if there is such a word) could be a macrocosm of humanity's sense of being or feeling "Lost" at one time or another. I think of John Milton's "Paradise Lost" and as a parody to that book, we as humans have lost that paradise of our previous lives as higher beings. We were once loved, sheltered, nurtured by great loving Heavenly Parents, we came from a "more exalted sphere."(Oh, how I wish I was back in heaven!) If you've ever felt that you were a stranger on this earth, that you were meant for something more, I'm here to tell you yes you were put here on earth for a purpose. I am reminded of my favorite hymn in church "Oh My Father." Read and you'll know what I mean.

O my Father, thou that dwellest
In the high and glorious place,
When shall I regain thy presence
And again behold thy face?
In thy holy habitation,
Did my spirit once reside?
In my first primeval childhood
Was I nurtured near thy side?

For a wise and glorious purpose
Thou hast placed me here on earth
And withheld the recollection
Of my former friends and birth;
Yet ofttimes a secret something
Whispered, “You’re a stranger here,”
And I felt that I had wandered
From a more exalted sphere.

I had learned to call thee Father,
Thru thy Spirit from on high,
But, until the key of knowledge
Was restored, I knew not why.
In the heav’ns are parents single?
No, the thought makes reason stare!
Truth is reason; truth eternal
Tells me I’ve a mother there.

When I leave this frail existence,
When I lay this mortal by,
Father, Mother, may I meet you
In your royal courts on high?
Then, at length, when I’ve completed
All you sent me forth to do,
With your mutual approbation
Let me come and dwell with you.

(This was a song written by Eliza R. Snow for the prophet Joseph Smith, Jr. after being taught the principle of Heavenly parents, yes, can you believe we have a Heavenly Mother!)

I didn't mean to get preachy but I did. Oh well. The point is not get lost spiritually, find your anchor and set sail for that elusive "paradise" we once knew. Paradise-our heaven, our inner sanctuary- can still be found in the comfort of our own homes and in the company of good friends.

I'm too tired to finish this post, A hui hou! (til next time in Hawaiiian) !