Personally, I believe in spending fun time with our loved ones. When I was a politician, my calendar was extremely packed with events. As a result, I missed out on some gatherings with my family. Now, I put way more effort to spend time with those who will always be there for me in good times and bad. In our career, people are often around us because they want something for their cause, career, business, or personal lives, which is natural. I’m just saying when you’re down in the gutter, sad, financially broke, sick, or dying, who will be there to comfort you, even help to pick you up? Those few people will be your loved ones. Go and enjoy things with them!
Here, my 3-year-old niece is petting a goat at the San Diego Zoo on October 17, 2018. Cute stuff!
Inbetween your hustle for your dreams, have fun with your loved ones my friends!
Congratulations to my friend Scott and Makiko on their marriage! I enjoyed their wedding reception at Cafe Julia in Honolulu, Hawaii on 11/17/2018. Wishing them good health and happiness!
– Jon Riki Karamatsu, Haiku Poem #118, 3/25/2018 –
I dedicate this poem to my friend Scott Imaye who got married to Makiko at Oahu, Hawaii today, November 17, 2018. Scott, a Hawaii boy has been working as an attorney in Tokyo, Japan mainly doing work on deals between U.S. and Japanese companies. He met Makiko in Japan. I’m so happy for them!
I stood on the top of the ridge and admired the beautiful green trees swaying far below with the wind. The last of the blue skies were painted over with shades of gray. Ahead, dark clouds were sweeping in like an angry predator. They swallowed peak after peak and kept coming for me.
I calmly inserted my headphones in my ears and played my favorite song. The happy tune brought me a smile. My time here would be over soon, but I was content. All that came to my mind was my mom, dad, sisters, nieces, family, and my closest friends. It’s funny how we spend much of our lives building so much, pushing through all the problems and terrible people that seemed so important to do back then. Yet, in the last moments of our lives, all we think about are the ones who really mattered. Memories of joy with them came blasting in like a movie in fast forward. You see their faces and then you’re gone.
Today, I had a nice lunch at Jade Dynasty Seafood Restaurant in Ala Moana Center with Speaker Emeritus of the Hawaii State House of Representatives Calvin K.Y. Say and three friends of his who have done amazing work in various sectors of business in Hawaii and abroad. My good friend Brandon Mitsuda had a nice talk with Speaker last week, which prompted him to reach out because he was thinking of me. His caring heart is always refreshing, and today he sparked light for me for my on and off feelings of emptiness that have become my norm for the past three years as I distanced myself from political, business, charity, and social events, unless it was a cause I connected with or relevant to a business project I was working on. There are many moments when I feel joy and a zest for life, but it’s scary how quickly these great feelings can leave me alone and in nothingness. It’s like a numbness that fogs up my vision of the many good things around me such as my loving family and friends, good momentum for a project that my business partners and I have been working on, and new opportunities presented before me. I love the excitement of business and politics, but at the same time I’m pained by the dark energy it attracts. All people have positive and negative energy, some more of one than the other. It’s impossible to completely avoid negative people. They’re everywhere. You see how they behave badly as drivers on the road. They make tantrums at work and yell at their family at home. When you succeed, they punish you harder on your failures or simply enjoy it as a spectator. When I’m vibrant and happy, I take the negative energies and use it towards my momentum for positive actions like an Aikido martial artist does in taking down an attacker. However, when I’m feeling down, I have to do all I can to not let the shadows pull me into a blank space. I have many daily practices, which I’ve mentioned in my peace page and previous posts that has helped me to fight off this shadowy assassin that has destroyed so many other souls. In my first novel, I wrote about how our suffering follows us even after we die, therefore, there’s no escape from darkness without us confronting it with all the light illuminated from within us through love, compassion, empathy, and gratitude. Speaker Calvin K.Y. Say is an example of how to live with such qualities. I’m extremely lucky to have his friendship. In revealing my vulnerable side, I hope it helps you to push forward with all your practices that lift your spirit whether it be spending time with loved ones, exercise, listening to music, creative writing, going to the ocean, or other such enjoyable experiences. May positive energy be with you always!
Happy people don’t worry or get angry about trivial things. Unless you or your loved one is about to die, what you’re mad or anxious about isn’t so bad. Be like water and adjust.
Solitude, deep self-reflection, and meditation can bring us great power by opening up our energy towards the basics of our existence: love, empathy, compassion, mindfulness, and gratitude, which transcend our physical existence. Everything else is either a bonus or unnecessary noise.
Thinking of my loved ones who passed away, and those of you facing life threatening illnesses. If I spent five days in prison in order to have them back for a moment or to take away your suffering from killer diseases . . . I look within myself to find clarity. Love you all.
An example of nonattachment and gratitude combined. Two very powerful practices. “My love will always be attached to you, but not my selfish desires. I’m forever grateful for what I had with you. I love you.”
I’ve been on the board of directors of Jodo Mission of Hawaii since 2006, taking the seat of my grandmother Bessie Karamatsu after her passing that year, serving as the 1st Vice President. Since 2011, I’ve been serving as the organization’s president. On Sunday January 28, 2018, I chaired Jodo Mission of Hawaii’s General Membership meeting and ended it with my annual speech, most of which is below, though I free-styled a chunk of my speech:
“Happy New Year everyone!
2017 was a year of rebuilding and repainting our infrastructure. We’ve repaired cracks and breakage on our temple, and painted a new coat of cherry blossom pink on our uniquely designed temple, a beautiful landmark in Honolulu, Hawaii. For the first quarter of 2018, we will continue the repairs and maintenance by rebuilding our copper awning on the Diamond Head end of our temple. We’ve requested the company involved with the awning to board off the construction area so that our members can continue to visit the niches of their loved ones. Also, we will be repairing and repainting our apartment building.
Please join us in this year’s obon services and bon dance, bazaar, mochi-making and sales, monthly services, guest speakers, and other activities. Feel free to invite family, friends, and acquaintances to our events as well. We are very lucky to have you.
In Buddhism, a positive mindset and nonattachment is critical to having a positive life as reflected in the Eightfold Path’s “Right Thought.” How we think will determine our actions. Too often we blow out of proportion what we perceive as problems with excessive worry and sadness, or worse, anger. A person with a positive mindset sees problems as challenges, opportunity, and change. Focus on what we can control, rather what we can’t control. If no can, no can – detach, evolve, and go back on the offense for other opportunities, and everyday say “thank you” for every good thing in your live, the beautiful nature around us, and our loved ones here and those who passed away for being a part of our lives.
“Nonattachment” is an area that can be challenging to practice. Our suffering can arise from our attachments to people and things. When we break up with a significant other or face the death of someone we love, it’s heartbreaking. We can still love people and things even when they’re no longer with us, but not be attached to the darkness of our desires that makes us yearn for them that can cause depression, anger, and the downfall of our health and relationships. The energy of our loved ones who passed away have never been taken away from us, and the same goes for the love and lessons we’ve learned from a difficult break-up.
Buddhism teaches us the importance of being in the middle, that calm and peaceful zone. What brings us great joy can quickly bring us great sadness when we lose what brought us joy. What makes us angry can lead us to the darkness of moodiness, hatred, and even revenge. We can be aware of our feelings, but constantly be awakened as Buddhists and practice our Right Thoughts and avoid attaching ourselves to the darkness. In order to help others we must be at peace within ourselves. Just like in an aircraft emergency, we have to put our oxygen masks on ourselves before we can help others.
Buddhism is a way of life. Our practice sends positive energy to others and the universe. Just as we just prayed to those who passed away with Reverend Nakano. I’ve had enough supernatural experiences to know there is something beyond this physical world. Thus, our soul that’s filled with compassion, empathy, and love will never die, but transcend through all realms to make our universe more peaceful.”
Below are pictures from the 2018 Jodo Shu Hawaii New Year’s Party:
Late night, wake up
I’m sick, I’m stuck
You’re here, so near
Your dream, my fear
Your love, my loss
Your dime, my cost
My fate, your hands
My life, your brand
Living my life in spite of you
This is the best that I can do
Nothing left for me to prove
I give it all to you
Nothing’s what we made it
And we’re living like we hate it
I have given all I can
But I can’t anymore
Freedom, I can taste it
And the truth, I need to face it
I’ve always been dedicated
But I can’t anymore
“Keep Cool” by Major Lazer feat. Shaggy & Winter Gordon.
Ever wondered why positive people make huge comebacks and negative people fade away? Negative people may be able to win the short game but only positive people win the long game!
Feeling good this morning! My younger sister Mia, second of 3 siblings had a baby girl, her third daughter! Mia and her family lives in the Bay Area, California. I have tears of joy forming as I write this, amongst all the work I’m doing for my business projects. I can’t wait to see them soon!
I now have 70 practices for my inner peace and happiness. One is listening to music, especially Electronic Dance Music or EDM, and yes, I dance by myself!!! I once got caught dancing by myself in my office by a staffer from another office when I was a young politician. Lol!!! Let’s go boys and girls!!!!!!!
On that early evening, I waited by the small, shallow pond in the middle of the large field like we planned a year ago. It was dark. The clouds blacked out all of the stars above. Anxious, I began to pull at the tall blades of wild grass. Did she forget about me? Had she really moved on? In a bitter argument sometime after our promise, I was blocked out of her life. If she had wanted to reconcile with me, she would have contacted me. I was beyond wishing. Instead, I was living in a fantasy.
I waited for about an hour and gave up. Rather than heading back home, I kicked off my shoes, took off my socks, and rolled up my pants to just below my knees. I entered the pond, in an attempt to make the most of my trip there. The cool water felt nice, and I was mindful of the soft mud squeezing between my toes. I slowly proceeded to the middle of the pond, where at that point, I had no care of wetting my clothes. So I crouched down, placed my face in my hands, and let my emotions go. I felt my tears seeping out beneath my palms, making little drops that fell into the water. I stayed like this for some time.
Then, I heard something. There was a buzz. Then a second buzz. And then another and another. I raised my face out of my hands to see what was going on. There were hundreds of fireflies flying in the air, lighting up the pond like tiny flickering candles.
Further away, I heard a faint sound of grass moving in the darkness. Many of the fireflies flew towards the noise. And then I saw a silhouette of the curves of a woman near the other end of the pond. She took a step into the light of the fireflies. It was Kaylee. She was smiling at me in a fitted long-sleeve top and a short skirt. We stood there for a few moments, just looking at each other. My tears were now coming from joy. I grinned back at her.
“Sorry,” she broke the silence. “It took me longer than I thought.”
I looked at her high-heeled sandals and giggled with a shake of my head.
Kaylee followed my eyes and looked down at her feet. “Yeah, I don’t know what I was thinking.” She bent over to unstrap and take off her sandals. Then, she lifted her light skirt and waded into the pond. As she walked towards me, ripples moved across the pool of water. Upon meeting me, she wrapped her arms around my waist and placed her cheek against my chest. I embraced her body in my arms.
Strangely, the fireflies reacted by moving around us like we were star actors of some kind of show. “Uh, guys, what are you doing?” I asked them.
Kaylee lifted her head from my chest and watched them fly around us. “Let them be,” she joked.
She turned her attention back to me, and gazed into my eyes. “I missed you.”
“I missed you too,” I replied.
Still holding one another, we inched closer. I closed my eyes and felt her soft lips press against mine. My eyelids tightened firmer and quivered upon feeling a euphoric sensation that moved throughout my soul.
Life sometimes has its strange twists and turns. I was glad that we both took a chance on this one.
Hi Everyone,
I hope you enjoyed this romantic scene. To help me evoke my emotions, I listened to the songs “Sleepy Eyes” by Elohim & Whethan and “Stargazing” by Kygo ft. Justin Jesso while I was writing this, which I posted below. I found the picture shown above, of a boy and girl in a shallow pond in a field of grass at http://gde-fon.com/download/guy_girl_lake_water_night_fireflies/401727/1680×1050.
1. Sleep.
2. Exercise.
3. Eat a balanced diet.
4. Gratitude.
5. Mindfulness – Always be aware of all the wonderful things.
6. Non-attachment – Don’t let my emotions for people, things, and events affect me negatively.
7. The glass is half full, not half empty – Look at the positive things.
8. Compassion.
9. Empathy.
10. Forgive.
11. Self-Reflect.
12. Meditate – Zen (clear my mind).
13. Meditate/Pray – Send love to others.
14. Listen to Music.
15. Sensory Therapy – Hot or cold shower; Massage; lemon scented cologne; and vanilla and lavender scented candles
16. Outdoor Therapy – Ocean Therapy is my favorite.
17. Visualize my goals.
18. Vision Board – Pinterest, computer wallpaper, and/or on wall.
19. Schedule my daily goals for work and play.
20. Write and update my yearly goals.
21. Write and update my lifetime goals.
22. Count my wins daily.
23. Spend time with loved ones.
24. Be around positive people.
25. Make new friends.
26. Law of Attraction – Perform positive actions and I will attract positive things.
27. Follow my passion.
28. Visualize my ideas and how they could work.
29. Write down my ideas.
30. Share and give away my ideas.
31. Provide value for others.
32. Create services and products that solves problems.
33. Disrupt the market – Don’t just blend in with the market, but do things differently to make it better.
34. Do the work and learn everything I can about my business.
35. Learn for my personal enjoyment.
36. Better old skills and develop new skills – 10,000 Hours Rule (Practice)
37. Read fiction and nonfiction.
38. Watch documentaries and educational videos.
39. Watch inspirational movies.
40. Write fiction and nonfiction.
41. Learn from my mentors and virtual mentors.
42. Use the energy from negative experiences to motivate me to work on my goals.
43. Move forward on my goals every day. On challenging days, I ask myself, “What are one or two things I can do to make me feel good and accomplished for the day?” Then I execute.
44. Tell a story to get 1,000 true supporters.
45. Be authentic to get 1,000 true supporters.
46. Travel.
47. Reward my wins.
I update my practices as I move forward in my life, thus, I will post an updated list of my practices when I adjust it. Have a great and peaceful life!
I’m feeling much happier today, September 18, 2017 after feeling anxiety in my personal life and career for the past 11 days or so. At 8:00 A.M., I had the first part of my annual physical at the hospital. Throughout the morning, I was texting my business partners in a different time zone/country. Then at 10:00 A.M., I took the minutes of the Hawaii Buddhist Council (Higashi Hongwanji, Mission of Hawaii, honda Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii, Jodo Mission of Hawaii, Koyasan Shingon Mission of Hawaii, Nichiren Mission of Hawaii, Soto Mission of Hawaii, and Tendai Mission of Hawaii) as it Secretary for 2017. After the meeting, Jodo Mission of Hawaii Bishop Emeritus Gensho Hara gave me a gift. Next, I reviewed and signed an EPA review for the repair and maintenance that we are contracting a Hawaii company to repair and repaint our buildings for Jodo Mission of Hawaii. Also, I reviewed a trust from a deceased member of Jodo Mission of Hawaii who was the secretary for my political influencer, Governor John A. Burns, and she had left some money for our organization.
When I returned home, I received a couple of good news from my business partner who I was texting in the morning in regards to traction for our project. Then I opened my gift from Bishop Gensho Hara, and was so delighted to see this glass display of Buddha. As President of Jodo Mission of Hawaii for 7 years, I was fortunate to have worked with Bishop Hara who served as Bishop for 8 years. He has shared with my so many teachings of compassion, and touching stories of people who have come to his temple at Lahaina, Maui from different walks of life and with diverse ethnicities. They sought refuge from life’s problems, and prayed/meditated for strength to attain inner peace. One 30-something-year-old Vietnamese woman prayed everyday at about 5 A.M. before the large statue of Buddha at his temple, and she’s now becoming a leader of Buddhism on the U.S. mainland. A middle-aged Caucasian male who was a U.S. military veteran of the Vietnam War would visit him, enjoying the rice that Bishop Hara’s wife made. He was sad with the passing of his wife a couple of years ago, and ended up shooting himself to death. It’s these touching stories that taught me the importance of love, compassion, empathy, mindfulness, and gratitude. When I told Bishop Hara that someday, after I make money, I can do more, he would gently shake his head with a slight smile – I understood his gesture, that even our simple acts of kindness can go very far to touch another’s soul. We can spread peace, even without money.
JON RIKI KARAMATSU 