3 posts tagged “aloha”
Remember that Aloha is about your individual uniqueness and your authenticity because it is about the spirit of your ha, the breath of your life which captures your essence. Alo is your demeanor, and thus sharing Aloha is living from the inside out. Beautiful thought isn’t it? That Aloha can be about your authentic self in values lived, and in the instinctual deep-seated thought which drives you to actions of "rightness and intellectual honesty with self." When you manage with aloha, this is the gift you give to everyone else. Can you imagine the partnership you will achieve, when those you manage recognize this gift you so freely and sincerely give to them?
Creating a culture of true generosity and hospitality does not happen easily, naturally, automatically or quickly. It's a journey we must walk - no short cuts. Ho'okipa is the sixth of nineteen values. To focus on one value without all that precedes will not bring all the desired results. Therefore, we must take five steps before we meet Ho'okipa. 1. Aloha - unconditional love 2. Ho'ohana - passionate work with the intent to bring meaning 3. 'Imi ola - seek to be the best you can be 4. Ho'omau - perseverance and persistence to make that which is good to last 5. Kulia i ka nu‘u - the value of achievement. The literal translation for Kulia i ka nu‘u is "strive to reach the summit." Each of these initial values prepares the way for true generosity and hospitality. During the next few posts, we'll look at each and how one blends and supports the next. Are you ready for this journey of "road to Hana" twists and turns? Ready or not, let's begin!
I love this descripton of Ho‘okipa from Rosa Say: Ho‘okipa defines the art of true service We all yearn for more hospitality, for we know it to be a strong, very genuine signal of the aloha spirit waiting for us within a new relationship, whether that relationship is with a person, a team, a neighborhood, a business, or an entire society. When hospitality is present we feel welcomed, we feel wanted, and we are more willing to be fully involved in the human interactions of life. So what can we do to awaken this sleeping art, doing our part to help hospitality be more vibrant again? How can we savor it more, and crave it less? For there to be ho‘okipa, hospitality must be unconditional Unconditional means there are absolutely no strings attached. Imagine that you are standing in front of this beautiful woman, her smile exquisitely captured in the photo above. She is ready to give you her flower lei of yellow plumeria, but it is gently and patiently held, resting well below her relaxed shoulders so she can be fully present for you. Her first gift, her first genuine desire, is that you receive the just-for-you intention of her smile. She waits, so you will connect with the look in her eyes seeking to share warmth, sincerity, and the complete aloha she has bubbling effervescently within her countenance. You are in a wonderful place, natural, green, verdant, but it has become a background now fuzzy and unimportant; all the focus is on the breadth of her grace in your presence, and the giving of her smile to you. She is there for you, and for no other reason. You soon understand that the lei is not really the gift; it is actually the lasting reminder you will take with you. It remains so you can keep holding that moment of aloha she had given you before the lei was placed around your shoulders, so that its beautiful scent could entice your own aloha spirit to come out and play. However by then, it might very well be that the woman is gone, an artist of ho‘okipa who has already left her mark. She did not have to wait for you to receive completely, because she had already given completely. Her giving has been unconditional, and her art gloriously celebrated. You have just been in the presence of Mea Ho‘okipa, that rare person whose ho‘ohana it is to share hospitality with complete giving.
