A Change in the Wind

Packing up to leave Sweden in such blizzard-like conditions seemed surreal at the time.  My suitcase consisted of 2 bathing suits, several sandals, my trusty flippers & my snorkeling mask, numerous bottles of sunscreen with various SPF levels, and other warm climate necessities.  To add yet even more confusion to the packing routine, my apartment suddenly sold -giving me only one week before my departure date to sort, pack up, and put into storage everything I owned.  In such chaos, I inevitably found small treasures that had escaped the moving deadline. Items were discovered a day or two later, hidden beneath the clutter or tucked away in dark corners.  As a result, there was no other choice but to include them inside my Hawaiian suitcases.  

So, here I am in my small tropical studio apartment, looking at my favorite vanilla extract  from Mexico, trying to find a safe place for my son's architectural drawing he made during his 10th year of life, and wondering just what on earth I can do with several pair of mis-matched winter socks.

 

As luck would have it, the day before my scheduled flight, all of Sweden was blanketed in a deep, white snowfall from a Siberian blizzard that swept across the Baltic.  It was a magnificent send-off, if one didn't have to worry about the 50-minute drive to the airport in icy conditions.  But heroes sometimes come in odd personas, and mine arrived in his taxi at 04:30 am.  Determined to get me to my flight on-time, I believe we reinvented roadways and created new short-cuts as we deviated over farmers' frozen fields and remote forest trails.

The new Christmas street decorations Norrtalje obtained from Drottninggatan in 

downtown Stockholm  -but note the size of the snowflakes!

It all seems vaguely like a dream.  I closed my eyes, said a bittersweet 'farewell,' and in a few weeks time, I found myself here:

As beautiful as Hawai'i is, there is still a cultural adjustment for me to make.  The pace is faster, tourists are out 'in-full', and riding a moped around the slippery mountain roads can be treacherous with the winter's seasonal wind blasting into ones face!

My working day begins with the alarm going off at 04:30 (to catch the 05:18 bus to the Park).  Fortunately, I'm always greeted by these cheerful residents (below).

Some of the 'locals' greatly ease the culture shock

After 8 days straight, I've finally had my first 2 days off.  Unlike my younger constituents, I just wanted to sleep!  I wish I had their energy, but there's no turning back the clock, so I must pace myself as I see fit.  I am not the fastest to pick things up, nor to i.d. all the animals, or even to remember where to find all the specific forms and buckets -but I love what I'm learning, and hopefully, the experience will have special meaning when I come to the end of my time here...if I only can survive the pace!

Lessons learned:

Don't stand too close to the edge of the Dolphin pool -you will get wet!

Wash my hands before and after everything!

Believe that overwhelming tasks will become easier with each repetition,

and lastly, 

never underestimate the value of a good night's sleep!