Soft Sunday Morning
From the Heart – A Real Run for Mayor
It’s called Dustin Barca’s Run For Mayor. I’m gonna run around the whole island and pay my respects to all the people and cultural sites of Kauai. I’m going to sail on a Hawaiian canoe from the end of the road on the north shore to the west side [There’s no road connecting the entire island.] Then I’ll run around the rest of the island. It’s going to take three days and it’s a 90-mile trip. We’re going to do events along the way. We’ll set up voter registration booths. Talk to community members, and get the word out along the way.
~ Dustin Barca, SURFER Magazine: Dustin Barca Interview May 23, 2014
In a true run for mayor, Dustin Barca is bringing something real to a realm so often appearing as non-sensical as the Queen’s court in Alice in Wonderland. As I type these words, he’s circling Kauai on foot, literally putting his body and soul toward raising awareness of the serious issues facing our island’s future (and present).
Running on the slogan “For the People, From the Heart” his ambitious trek circumnavigating Kauai is literally utilizing that blood-pumping organ to full capacity. Whether one agrees with Barca’s politics or not, it’s undeniable that the man is truly putting his heart into the race.
As our island becomes more aware of the insidious infiltration of GMO testing, a fresh infusion of sustainable-minded individuals are announcing their candidacy for local office. I’m inspired to see real people, rooted in the fundamentals (water, food, land, perpetuity), aspiring to help shape Kauai’s path forward.
Dustin’s footsteps will have traversed many a mile. It will be a journey of a lifetime for him, whether he wins as mayor or not.
The Hawaiian word, imua, roughly translates as ‘forward.’ It is exclaimed as the group paddles a canoe in unison.
Imua, Dustin!
Imua, Kauai.
You can read the interview with Dustin in Surfer magazine here.
The story on ESPN here.
And check out his website here.
Note Card of the Week- Bubble Shell
I found this shell because I was looking. As in, slowing down long enough to inhale the oxygenated ions of salt air that swirled about my downturned head. I was sitting. Not moving. At the beach, just sifting. Me, and the endless grains of sand.
I was settled down in a heap of it. Mounds of what had once been reef and rock, now broken down and rounded to minutiae. Specks by the gajillions, piled layer upon layer, making ‘land’ beneath my body.
As many granules as there are stars in the sky, I’ve heard it said. Really?
I don’t know the scientific facts. I only know that I sifted upon this small bubble shell. No more than half a centimeter, it was intact, adorning pink stripes highlighted in delicate lines of gold.
I had to peer closely to see this. So close, I guess, that when back at home with the camera, the sunlight played with my zoom. Reflections off the plate, upon which the shell is sitting, turned watery, like golden pools.
The image has become part of my Hawaii Shells note card series and is the featured note card this week.
Summer is in the air, and there will be more beach days ahead. Plenty of chances to slow down and see.
Creating these cards makes me smile. Sharing them with you brings me happiness. Knowing that you may pass them on to someone you love, well, that’s just a beautiful thing.
All cards are hand-made, with care, on recycled paper.
For the Archives 