2007 HUOA Leadership Study
Tour
By Rena Takushi, Hui
Makaala
I would like to
give my sincere mahalo to the Hawaii United Okinawan Association, the Okinawan
Prefectural Government, and most of all, to my club, Hui Makaala for nominating
me for the HUOA Leadership Study Tour 2007.
There are no words
or phrase that can summon the sincere appreciation for having this once in a
lifetime journey to Okinawa. This was my first time to Okinawa, and the spirit
of its people and culture will continue to resonate with me
forever.
I was impressed and
joyfully overwhelmed by the Okinawa’s beautiful landscape and the resilient
nature of the Okinawan people. After learning much about the atrocities of war
and its impact on Okinawa’s livelihood, the most important value that has been
imbued within me is ichiru takara or
“life is precious”. I enjoyed listening to the stories of war survivors, the
history of the Battle of Okinawa, and deeply reflecting on the enormous amounts
of courage it must have taken to rebuild families, businesses and communities
within Okinawa. I was mesmerized by the survivors’ determination and passion for
world peace, not only for Okinawa, but for the entire world of
humanity.
Our trip to
Katsuren was the most memorable turning point for me. We were able to spend the
evening with Daiichi Hirata and the children of his drama production who were
middle and high school students. Learning and dancing with the children was a
great hands-on experiential activity and I felt like a child again. It is rare
to be able to go back into time and remember what it feels like to be a child
especially when you have great demands as an adult!
After our dance
activity, we were able to watch a part of a drama scene that was filled with
music, dance and emotion. My eyes filled with tears as the children exuded
enthusiasm and tenacity in their performance and story telling. These tears were
for the realization that the Uchinanchu spirit binds and connects together, and
even more so, that this wonderful spirit continues to reside within me. This
reflection was very powerful as I felt somewhat disconnected from my heritage of
being fourth generation Uchinanchu.
I was able to truly
feel, from the bottom of my heart, a deep sense of appreciation for my family
and most importantly for my own life. I come home to Hawaii with more
opportunity to reflect on how I would like to live the rest of my life, and the
kind of legacy I want to impart onto my children.
The reality of my
generation is filled with a sense of hopelessness and war. I hope to strengthen
the relationship between Hawaii and Okinawa and improve the quality of life for
its people. My greatest wish is for the other regions of the world that are
experiencing the hardships of war to learn from the experiences of Hawaii and
Okinawa to cultivate the resiliency and humanistic qualities that we are truly
capable of.
I’d like to again
sincerely thank all the individuals and organizations in helping to make this
trip very memorable.
Choo kukuru ru dee
ichi
The heart is the
most essential human quality,
Rena Takushi