Hawaiian Jewel
   by Angela Y

Hot sun, burning sun, eyes tearing up sun. Paddling faster and faster toward the sun, never getting any closer but telling herself, someday I’ll catch the sun. I will scoop it up with my paddle and pull it down into the water. The sun will warm the water and everyone will smile. Jewel daydreams as she paddles. She is the “powerhouse” on her paddling team and it is now winter time in Hawaii. It may still be warm on the shore, but the water is c-c-c-c-c-old!

Mom should be picking me up soon, she thinks to herself. I need to go wash my paddle, she decides, as the lagoon where she paddles is notorious for smelly water. She gathers up her book bag, hugs her friends farewell and hoists her paddle firmly above her waist. She holds it like a sword; she is a warrior, going into battle. She looks around for an imaginary foe to spar with. Seeing no one, she becomes a huntress in the rain forest, cutting through long blades of grass, swinging her paddle like a machete.

She goes to the waterfall (outdoor shower); plunges her paddle into the cascading liquid and her paddle immerges clean, cleansed by the sanitized water. She goes to wait for her mother who should be off work soon. Her mother is in the Air Force and it is due to her military service that Jewel has such a rich and rewarding life in Hawaii. Learning about the Hawaiian culture has been a pleasant result of belonging to her high school’s paddling team. Diversity is something that is second nature to her, and because of this, she sees the Air Force as a great place to live, work and play.