Celebrating a 60th Wedding Anniversary—Perceiving Is Alive and Well


Shave ice is on our mind as we depart the boat and head to our SUV. Kevin, Terri, and I are still a little wet, but we don’t mind. It’s Hawaii after all. As we drive just across the street, we see a large crowd has surrounded the Original Hawaiian Shave Ice stand. On one side of the Blue Dragon Restaurant parking lot the small and colorful stand waits for us to join the crowd. Mom, Dad, and Cindy grab a place to sit. Kevin, Terri, and I get in line and immediately see the delicious looking frozen treats coming from the window. While long, the line moves fast, and suddenly we find ourselves at the counter ready to order. The pressure…How do I decide? My Perceiving preference is alive and well, but it’s not helping me right now. I need to decide. So…I just ask the person at the counter what he likes best and order that. Why not just let someone else just decide for me?

One by one our shave ice comes out. I join Cindy, Mom, and Dad while Kevin and Terri play courier. Another family has joined us at our table by now and we all have a pleasant conversation about how wonderful Hawaii is. Cindy is still excited about getting in the water. It’s fun seeing that kid side of her when talking about it at the table with the family that has joined us. Since we have been here, I’ve noticed how nice everyone in my family is during this trip when interacting with other families. I see it again today when talking with this other family. My parents have always been this way, and I really believe they have done a wonderful job of passing that along to Cindy, Terri and me. Of course, being in Hawaii makes it very easy to be nice. The air, sun, smell…it really feels like paradise.

By the way, if you want to visit Original Hawaiian Shave Ice just drive 20 minutes north of Waikoloa—amazing! Tip: order the small size; it will still be huge.

If you want to read more about my Hawaiian family vacation, check out the previous blogs in this series: