Page 27 - Manila Up-Vol3#6
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of responsibility. As a whole we
                                                                                    can do what is ‘pono’ (or right in
                                                                                    Hawaiian) divided, we will end
                                                                                    up like all the plastic scattered
                                                                                    and strewn about in our oceans
                                                                                    that has wrought havoc upon
                                                                                    our home planet. Given time
                                                                                    and opportunity, it is still a
                                                                                    viable course. However, course
                                                                                    correction takes a lot of sacrifce.
                                                                                    With monetary gains as the prime
                                                                                    purpose of business, and simple
                                                                                    survival as the only option for
                                                                                    many disenfranchised native
                                                                                    folk, how can this paradigm
                                                                                    shif towards what is both truly
                                                                                    “fair” and laissez-faire? Tere
            Ominous clouds, will tradition                                          are “heauaus” (sacred altars built
            and new age merge with tome                                             by ancestors of the land) which
                                                                                    still stand boldly, untouched,
               Tere are legends here that remain intact, sacred   or at the very least, respected by bulldozing crews. I
            spaces that are “kapu” or of limits, chants and dances   usually stand in silence and say a prayer that somehow,
            to appease the gods and deities as well as rituals and   the gods will favor this blessed rock in the middle
            practices handed down for generations by ancestors.   of the Pacifc and keep it as a paradise to the fullest
            Undisturbed for countless years in many places, the   extent humanly possible. I continue to remain within
            onslaught of artifcial intelligence has rocked the   my present conscious moment with the hope that
            place to its core. A tourist mecca, developers and   our collective prayers and deeds will come to pass.
            developments in tandem with computers has caused a   Meanwhile, we continue living in the moment, Maui
            dissonance which, although not nearly as obvious to the   style. Mahalo dear readers, I invite you to fll in with
            visitor, many residents feel with intensity.         your thoughts.
               To live in the present moment is a mantra of the
            newly conscious. So it is with the
            simple folk who have inhabited this
            gem of real estate for generations.
            Tey follow the ebbs and fows of the
            tides, sit with nature as they revel and
            show appreciation in various ways,
            doing it in present time. So where is the
            disconnect? I am not going down that
            path. I prefer connectivity as my vein of
            discourse. Why? Why not? I ask.
               Being awake and conscious of the
            present moment is our leverage, on both
            sides. Te old and the new combined
            in synchronicity. Where does the
            twain meet? Maui. Tis island which is    A heauau stands boldly proud amidst
            now an incubator for innovation and       concrete and parked cars in Maui
            sustainability with the protection of
            the environment as its primary onus


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