The Aloha Spirit
The Aloha Spirit is not a Hawaiian concept. Instead it is a concept created by the Hawai'i's Visitor Bureau to make money. However, I wish that more people would realize that what they are referring to is not the aloha spirit. It's called "being compassionate." I also wish they would stop saying how great "the Aloha spirit" is. There is no such thing.
In this letter, the writer mistakenly thinks that it is a Hawaiian concept. No... it's a Haole Concept and as usual the Haole World wants to bottle it up and sell it:
Visitor received roadside aloha
While vacationing on Oahu during Thanksgiving week, I was treated to a personal demonstration of your famous "aloha spirit."
After attending the evening show at the Polynesian Cultural Center, I returned to my rental car only to discover that the vehicle would not start, or even turn over; apparently the result of a dead battery. Imagine being stranded on a strange island late at night without knowing where to get mechanical service -- an unnerving experience to say the least.
Fortunately, I carry AAA auto insurance which includes roadside emergency service. AAA promised to send someone out within 45 minutes to an hour. I returned to my car, resigned to wait an hour to get help, and Lord knows how much time and expense to get back to my hotel room in Honolulu.
While I was waiting, a local couple drove up and offered to help. In fact, this couple flagged down a PCC vehicle and insisted that the security officer use a jumper cable to start my disabled vehicle. Within minutes, my car was running and I was on my way back to Honolulu.
Mahalo to the warm, beautiful people of Oahu who share the aloha spirit so freely!
John W. Lillpop
San Jose, Calif.
Seen at http://starbulletin.com/2005/01/05/editorial/letters.html
In this letter, the writer mistakenly thinks that it is a Hawaiian concept. No... it's a Haole Concept and as usual the Haole World wants to bottle it up and sell it:
Visitor received roadside aloha
While vacationing on Oahu during Thanksgiving week, I was treated to a personal demonstration of your famous "aloha spirit."
After attending the evening show at the Polynesian Cultural Center, I returned to my rental car only to discover that the vehicle would not start, or even turn over; apparently the result of a dead battery. Imagine being stranded on a strange island late at night without knowing where to get mechanical service -- an unnerving experience to say the least.
Fortunately, I carry AAA auto insurance which includes roadside emergency service. AAA promised to send someone out within 45 minutes to an hour. I returned to my car, resigned to wait an hour to get help, and Lord knows how much time and expense to get back to my hotel room in Honolulu.
While I was waiting, a local couple drove up and offered to help. In fact, this couple flagged down a PCC vehicle and insisted that the security officer use a jumper cable to start my disabled vehicle. Within minutes, my car was running and I was on my way back to Honolulu.
Mahalo to the warm, beautiful people of Oahu who share the aloha spirit so freely!
John W. Lillpop
San Jose, Calif.
Seen at http://starbulletin.com/2005/01/05/editorial/letters.html