Three Little Birds

The other day was my three year anniversary in Hawaii. Every year at this time I read the journal entry I wrote on the plane on the way here.  I’m not sure why, maybe to remind myself that I bravely took a risk and a leap into the unknown, or maybe to reflect on all the people I have met and experiences I’ve had here since that day.

Of course, before making my big leap, I questioned my decision and wondered if I was making a wise choice to leave everything I was comfortable with and all the people I love. I remember sitting at Kits Beach thinking, ‘I need a sign.’ I needed the universe to reassure me that I was going to be ok; that I wasn’t delusional and that my heart was really telling me to move to an island by myself in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

A few days later, I headed to the U.S Consulate in Vancouver to pick up my American passport. I sat down in the waiting room and what was the first thing I saw on the wall? A large, framed photo of Diamondhead. Bingo. My sign arrived, clear as day. Two years earlier while visiting Oahu, I stood at the lighthouse lookout at Diamondhead and decided I wanted to move to Hawaii. Since then, Diamondhead has been, in many ways, (excuse the pun) my rock. I have so much love and emotion for that darn crater, it’s ridiculous. Just looking at it calms me down. Running around it is my greatest therapy. Watching it bask in the sun’s last rays of the day makes my heart swell. I have about 800 photos of it and I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of taking more. It’s an iconic image of Hawaii, but to me it symbolizes my love for these islands and the place that has become my second home.

I found myself back at the lookout the other day after a run, staring at the ocean and contemplating my heavy heart and current crossroads in life.  ‘I need a sign’ my mind said. Come on universe! Gimme something.  Just a little reassurance that everything’s going to be ok. Embracing uncertainty is so much easier said than done. I squeezed my eyes shut.

“Excuse me,” I heard a voice behind me.

Holy crap, that was fast.

I whip around to see a man standing behind me.

“Oh I’m sorry to bother you,” he said, “I was wondering if you could take a picture for me.”

“Oh yes, of course” I say, snapping out of my trance. Damn, that would have been the fastest turnaround time on a sign I’ve ever gotten.

He was a sweet man from the mainland, visiting Oahu for work. “I need to take pictures to show my wife,” he said, “to show her this….” He trailed off, looking out at the vast ocean, sparkling before us.

“I know,” I said following his gaze, “It’s a special place.”

He thanked me again and I started walking home, resigning myself to the fact that there can’t always be signs or answers in life when we want them.

A few days later, I was enjoying a spontaneous day with my friends that were in town from Vancouver. We had made plans that didn’t pan out, so we decided to get out on the water for some surfing and paddleboarding in Waikiki instead. After a great session, we hopped around a few bars at Waikiki for happy hour and ended up at Dukes. Every Sunday at Dukes, the legendary Hawaiian musician Henry Kapono plays at sunset at the beach bar.

I happened to run into my two favorite patients from the chiropractic office I used to work at, Nikki and her eight year old son, Reef. Every week, Reef would run into the office yelling “Auntie Rosalyn!” He’d climb up in my lap and wreak havoc on my desk with post-it notes and highlighters. One day he brought his ukulele and serenaded me. We were giggle buddies and he was definitely my highlight every week. Nikki, her husband and Reef have been regulars at Dukes on Sundays since Reef was about two years old.

Nikki informed me that for the past year or so Reef has been closing the show with Kapono, singing his favorite song, Three Little Birds by Bob Marley. Reef has known the words since he was a little tyke and one day Kapono asked him if he wanted to sing with him. A tradition was born and apparently Reef is one of the only things that makes the otherwise stoic Kapono crack a smile these days.

Sure enough, at six o’clock, Reef ran up to the stage and sang his favorite song. Don’t worry about a thing, ‘Cause every little thing gonna be all right. 

The answers will come, when the time is right. For now I need to smile, dance and sing along. Thanks for the sign, Reef.

Don’t worry about a thing, 
‘Cause every little thing gonna be all right. 
Singin’: Don’t worry about a thing, 
‘Cause every little thing gonna be all right!

Rise up this mornin’, 
Smiled with the risin’ sun, 
Three little birds 
Pitch by my doorstep 
Singin’ sweet songs 
Of melodies pure and true, 
Sayin’, “This is my message to you-ou-ou:”

Singin’: Don’t worry ’bout a thing, 
‘Cause every little thing gonna be all right.
Singin’: “Don’t worry (don’t worry) ’bout a thing, 
‘Cause every little thing gonna be all right!