We’ve been in Kawela since mid August and it’s now time to head back to the mainland. We sometimes vacation rent our home here and then I have to make sure all closets and drawers and personal stuff are locked away. But this time we will only be gone a bit over a month, to spend Thanksgiving with our family….so the packing up isn’t so much. While it’s aways a bit heart tugging to leave this beautiful island, I am happy to go back to Northern California where the leaves will just be starting to turn and autumn will just be filling the air. It’s always wonderful to be back with family.

It’s been over 25 years since we found ourselves on the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii. Our mission was to join with our extended family to find a property where we would all gather to help care for my husband’s mother, who was diagnosed with Alzheimers. I remember contacting a real estate agent and sharing what we were specifically wishing for…never having been on the North Shore of Oahu.
Our wishes were for a house with “soul”…with history…with stories to be shared….funky, with charm.

In Hawaii there aren’t a lot of very old houses because of the weather and because people are mostly living outside all the time…but towards the end of our touring properties, the agent said he wanted to show us a house that was in a little community called Kawela Bay, because it was rare to be offered on the market…and he thought it would be fun for us to see it.

I remember stepping through the kitchen door, tugging on my husband’s shirt, and whispering…“This is it! “
And it was.. and we still pinch ourselves everyday when we look out at the sunrise . Whatever brought us here was an incredible blessing.

Marilyn