So as I mentioned in my first post, I arrived here on the island of Oahu in April 2010. I was fortunate enough to land a job with a local mortuary fairly quickly. Why would I want to work with dead people you ask? Well, to be honest, it wasn't exactly my dream job..I did not dream of corpses handing me my paycheck all my life. However, once I arrived there, and was able to leave there on my first day safe and sound, I realized it wasn't all that bad.
Coming from Hilo on the Big Island, for those of you who don't understand, let me explain. Things are done there in a kind of 'old school' fashion. It's refreshing, don't get me wrong--when comparing it to the throngs of people and the traffic here on Oahu.. However, having been there all my life, I realize now by comparison, that we were rather sheltered from new experiences. It was not done purposely by our Mayor or anything like that. It's just that the life on the Big Island personifies family and food, parties and high school football games, long hikes into an active volcano...I think you get it. To be frank, there's really not much to do in the way of festivities or culture. Not often anyway. Ok, which brings me back to the mortuary. I was really surprised and awed when I was exposed to all the variations the different cultures provide when saying goodbye to a loved one. Samoan, Filipino, Tongan, Laotian, Chinese Buddhist, Latter Day Saints, non-denominational, Japanese Buddhist, Korean Christian, 'Regular Christian' (huh? regular? anyway)....I have listened to Kahu and Priests, and Deacons and Reverends, and Pastors..etc...and I have enjoyed them all. I must admit that not understanding a lick of Chinese can get cumbersome, but watching the rituals is truly amazing.
Ok. I will tell you more about this later, because I have to go to work now. But before I leave, I would like to lend you some food for thought:. When we expire from this life, I truly believe that our souls..our very existence goes somewhere. I guess it lies in your beliefs where that 'somewhere' will be. Why do I know this? Because I work with dead people. They aren't dead though. What I am working with is the vessel which carried the person. The person went somewhere else...Where are you going?
Coming from Hilo on the Big Island, for those of you who don't understand, let me explain. Things are done there in a kind of 'old school' fashion. It's refreshing, don't get me wrong--when comparing it to the throngs of people and the traffic here on Oahu.. However, having been there all my life, I realize now by comparison, that we were rather sheltered from new experiences. It was not done purposely by our Mayor or anything like that. It's just that the life on the Big Island personifies family and food, parties and high school football games, long hikes into an active volcano...I think you get it. To be frank, there's really not much to do in the way of festivities or culture. Not often anyway. Ok, which brings me back to the mortuary. I was really surprised and awed when I was exposed to all the variations the different cultures provide when saying goodbye to a loved one. Samoan, Filipino, Tongan, Laotian, Chinese Buddhist, Latter Day Saints, non-denominational, Japanese Buddhist, Korean Christian, 'Regular Christian' (huh? regular? anyway)....I have listened to Kahu and Priests, and Deacons and Reverends, and Pastors..etc...and I have enjoyed them all. I must admit that not understanding a lick of Chinese can get cumbersome, but watching the rituals is truly amazing.
Ok. I will tell you more about this later, because I have to go to work now. But before I leave, I would like to lend you some food for thought:. When we expire from this life, I truly believe that our souls..our very existence goes somewhere. I guess it lies in your beliefs where that 'somewhere' will be. Why do I know this? Because I work with dead people. They aren't dead though. What I am working with is the vessel which carried the person. The person went somewhere else...Where are you going?
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