6x Exercise for 2022: Ran 4.14 miles in Waikele (Ran 16.9 miles total for 2022). πββοΈ
After darkness took over the world, a thousand birds embarked on a treacherous journey to find the rising phoenix to bring order and peace. After much suffering from the journey, only thirty remained. The rest gave up. The thirty birds realized that they themselves are the rising phoenix. ππ¦ ππ¦
Stories can transform your psyche. In turn, you can change the world. π
Pictured is my 6th exercise for 2022. I ran 4.14 miles in Waikele (Ran 16.9 miles total for 2022). πββοΈ
I dreamt I was driving a car through a nicer part of a dreary town in the Midwest of the United States.
In another scene, I was on a mountain where I met three Native American boys ages 11 to 12 who were wearing traditional outfits worn before the Caucasians forced their culture upon them. They had horses for their transportation. I joined them. We embarked on a quest to fight the resistance, the forces that beat humans down until they submit to the slavery of popular culture.
The boys and I quickly became friends. By being with them, the child in me fully returned. I was no longer an adult. Imagination was thriving in me again.
We fought off different elements of nature under control by humankind such as hay and manure. It attacked us like beasts. We fought them off and defeated them. When we were finally free from the control of humankind’s overwhelming culture. It was just the four of us on the top of the mountain with nature. Trees, shrubs, and breeze. It was wonderful!
When it was time for the boys to depart, they hopped on their horses and rode them backward down the mountain. I felt so sad. I could tell they were too by the looks on their faces. We watched each other as their horses slowly walked backwards down the mountain toward the great plains.
In the final scene, the three Native American boys were walking through a crowded sandy beach in Hawaii toward the ocean. People stared at them because they stood out with their old traditional Native American clothes. The boys walked by them as if they didn’t exist. I was there sitting on the sand among the crowd but I wasn’t. It was like I was a ghost. I started to cry.
The leader, the eldest boy entered the ocean first. He gracefully glided through the glassy water. His face said it all. He was at peace and free. I cried harder.
I woke up from my dream in my bed at this point. It was as if I was really crying. The message was powerful.
Jon Riki Karamatsu writing about his dream “The Resistance” on November 5, 2021.
This dream represents our desire to break free from what popular society pressures us to do. We have become slaves to it. The three Native American boys represent a life that has become extinct after the Caucasians forced them onto reservations and into re-education systems to learn their culture and language. As history has shown, much of the old ways of the Native American culture has died and can only be relived through stories. This is how important stories are. One of my screenplays about Hawaiian culture has this same message. The pressure from popular culture has been making me feel doubtful about my love for writing stories.
The Native American aspect of my dream was likely influenced by an NHK television interview I watched last night with my parents at their house in Pearl City, Hawaii. It was about Larry Littlebird, a Navajo in his senior years who overcame his suffering to find himself and his culture under the overbearing pressure to conform to popular culture. He is a storyteller who founded Hamaatsa, a place to reconnect with nature with indigenous wisdom, by listening to nature and to each other in this challenging time.
The beach scene in Hawaii represents my desire to be with the ocean and sand, a place where I feel connected to nature. I am at peace there. The pressure of whether or not I should get back with the program of popular culture or continue to rebel against it has been weighing heavy on my shoulders.
11: Positive Masters – Study & Work with Me – Stream Background Noise
Welcome to Positive Masters where we develop our mindset and passion projects. In this video, let’s study and work together for two 1-hour Pomodoros (study and work sessions) with the sound of a stream in the background. Click the link or visit Positive Masters’ YouTube channel to study and work with me! π
In the intro, I talk about the ups and downs we all face. Despite this, we do our best to show up and continue working towards our vision of our future selves. The fact that we can use technology to motivate one another and work together is amazing! Let’s do our best to keep our mindset positive. Together, we can keep progressing step by step.
I’m a lawyer, small business person, and retired politician from Hawaii. My passion projects are writing fiction and creating content about mindset and mental health.
Enjoy Positive Masters’ blog, podcast, videos, and products at https://positivemasters.com to strengthen your mindset and build your passion projects to boost your happiness and counter any anxiety, sadness, or anger you may be experiencing. Wishing you well! β€
With Warmest Aloha, Jon Riki Karamatsu
0:00 Intro
2:23 First 1-Hour Pomodoro (Study and Work Session)
1:02:26 15-Minute Break
1:17:37 Second 1-Hour Pomodoro (Study and Work Session)
2:17:40 Outro and Information About Positive Masters
11: Positive Masters – Study & Work with Me – Stream Background Noise
My Horror Pilot Teleplay Made the Red List for Coverfly and Ranked at 16 for its Horror 1-Hour Television Category.
Logline: Mari, a rookie Honolulu detective is forced to confront her sex addiction when she investigates a mysterious murder that leads her to a cult engaging in bizarre sexual activities that attracts a dark supernatural force that feeds on human souls.
The theme for Eyes to Your Soul is sex addiction and the double standard placed on women for their sexual behavior in comparison to men. This TV show also addresses the challenges women face in male-dominated workplaces. The protagonist is female and Asian.
Grateful to see my horror pilot teleplay, Eyes to Your Soul make Coverfly’s Red List and rank at 16 in its Horror 1-Hour Television category.
3: Positive Masters – Study & Work with Me. Peaceful Piano Music. Two 45-Minute Pomodoros.
In this video, let’s study and work together for two 45-minute Pomodoros (study or work sessions). Step by step, let’s get closer to our goals!
I spent hours working while listening to catalogs of various piano music that I purchased the licenses for. I handpicked the ones that soothed me and kept me focused on my work and studies. I hope you like them as much as I do.Β
For those of you who don’t know me, I’m a lawyer, small business person, and retired politician from Hawaii.
My passion projects are writing fiction and creating content about mindset and mental health. I’m happy to have you as my study and work partner.
Together, we can push through our ups and downs in our quest to improve ourselves and create value for others. We can’t control outside influences, but we can control our effort to learn, develop our skills, and bolster our relationships. That is my mission and the mission of Positive Masters.
Enjoy Positive Masters’ blog, podcast, videos, and products at https://positivemasters.com to strengthen your mindset and build your passion projects to boost your happiness and counter any anxiety, sadness, or anger you may be experiencing.
Wishing you well!Β
With Warmest Aloha,
Jon Riki Karamatsu
0:00 Intro
0:31 First Pomodoro – Study and Work with Me
45:33 15-Minute Break
1:00:43 Second Pomodoro – Study and Work with Me
1:45:46 Outro and Information About Positive Masters
This past week I started watching Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, an anime about a boy Tanjiro who begins his quest to fight demons after a demon slaughters his family and turns his sister Nezuko into one.
Pictured on my computer screens is Nezuko to inspire me to keep writing my screenplay and novels on top of my legal and business work. So far I’ve written 3 spec screenplays (sci-fi and fantasy, competition and lifestyle, and erotic thriller), and 2 unpublished novels (paranormal thriller and historical action and adventure).
Creativity is the best place to be for my mindset and mental health. It makes me feel happy and free!
Our Positive Masters Dream Cloud Mantra Unisex T-Shirt is a great way to motivate you every day to take time to be creative in your passion projects! These t-shirts make great gifts for your loved ones who are striving for their dreams! You can purchase these shirts here: Dream Cloud Mantra Dark Unisex T-Shirts
Enjoy the Positive Masters universe at www.positivemasters.com for mindset and business practices, motivational writing and podcast, and apparel and accessories with inspirational mantras to boost your happiness and counter any anxiety, sadness, or anger that you may be facing.
I’ve got you locked in my mental clock. A romantic poem based on my first novel.
I’ve got you locked in my mental clock.
When I meditate, I go back to our first date.
A different time that no longer exists.
I say I don’t need anyone; yet, my dream persists.
I step into the stream where I last danced with you.
If everything isn’t true, then why do I still love you?
– +positive masters+, Jon Riki Karamatsu, 4/23/2020 –Β β
This love poem was inspired by my first novel (unpublished) about a young politician, Ken who’s miserable with the adversity in his career until he meets a young woman, Kaylee in a coffee shop in his dream – only this is not a dream but a place where lost souls are trapped. As he helps Kaylee to heal the emotional pain of her past, he soothes the struggles of his own soul. However, if Ken saves Kaylee from her suffering, he will lose her forever. To make things worse, there are dark forces who don’t want Ken to learn the secrets of their world.Β π
One of my favorite things to do is write fiction and poems that has a romantic element in them. Love can bring great passion; yet, it can quickly turn dark with sorrow. That’s why in many novels and movies, you’ll see a love interest in the story for that dramatic effect. So long as you can see romance as an adventurous journey rather than something that has to remain in cloud nine forever, you can appreciate its beauty.Β β€
Enter the +positive masters+ universe at www.positivemasters.com for mindset practices, motivational writing, and apparel with inspirational mantras and designs to boost your happiness and counter any stress, anxiety, sadness, or anger that you may be facing. π
I recently watched The Florida Project on Netflix, a movie byΒ Sean Baker about the innocence of kids making the most of their lives despite being poor. I cried. No matter what problems you have, there’s so many other people facing tougher challenges. What an amazing movie, with both playful humor and heart-wrenching drama!
My heart melts for the children going through so many difficulties. Resiliently, many of these kids are still able to find ways to have fun. In my second novel, I wrote about the adversities the children in Iraq faced after the invasion by the U.S. I’m still pitching this story to the literary industry.
I feel for all of you going through tough times. I believe some of your greatest work can come from your emotional pain. If you have something creative you enjoy working on, whether it be drawing, creative writing, craftsmanship, fixing-up vehicles, acting, singing, filmmaking, music production, interior decorating, making crafts, cooking, developing games, photography, software programming, sculpturing, pottery, or anything that sparks joy in your soul, keep doing it when you have time. In fact, make time for it. Creativity makes your soul happier. I love you guys!
With Warmest Aloha, Jon Riki Karamatsu
+postive masters+
Enter the +positive masters+ universe at www.positivemasters.com for mindset practices, motivational writing, and apparel with inspirational mantras and designs to boost your happiness and counter any stress, anxiety, sadness, or anger that you may be facing.
Besides this list, there are many more benefits of reading fiction. These benefits are some that have been beneficial for me. I hope they helpful for you as well!
5 Benefits of reading fiction: ππβ
(1) Fiction expands your imagination. You visualize the characters & scenes. πβ
(2) Fiction motivates you to be the hero in your life. In most novels, the protagonist faces obstacles to become a hero. Win or lose, you respect the protagonist for his/her tremendous efforts. Likewise, you can do the same in your journey. πβ β
(3) Fiction helps you empathize for others. When you read fiction, you empathize for the characters undergoing hardship, an important quality to have in your life and career. β€οΈβ
(4) Through fiction, you learn different styles of writing that aren’t usually shown in nonfiction books. ποΈβ
(5) Fiction reduces your stress by taking you into other worlds and into the lives of unique characters. πβ
Positive Masters is an e-commerce store at www.positivemasters.com that provides lifestyle practices, creative writing, apparel, accessories, and fashion to boost your happiness and counter any stress, anxiety, or sadness you may be facing. We offer free shipping for purchases of $50 or more! ππποΈβ
Live the middle way. From the middle, you can see the light in every dark situation. It’s a super power that will expand your gratitude power, another super power, making your positive lifestyle even stronger.
Part 3 of 3: Live the middle way. From the middle, you can see the light in every dark situation.
From the middle, you can see the connection between dark and light because from the middle, you can see everything, dark, light, and all the shades in-between. If you can see the light when you’re in darkness, even a glimmer, then you can be grateful in your darkest moments.
In fact, the more you practice being in the middle, you’ll be able to expand your gratitude practice because you can always see the good (light) in all your bad (dark) situations. This is definitely a super power to have! Here are my 10 examples of how suffering can expand your gratitude practice despite a challenging experience:
1. When a loved one dies, you’re grateful for the time you had with that person.
2. When your romantic relationship falls apart, you’re grateful to have had the opportunity to experience romance.
3. When you fail at a goal, you’re grateful for the lessons you learned from the failure.
4. When you face financial hardship, you’re grateful for every little thing you have that helps you get by.
5. When you provide value for others but get attacked by opposition or critics, you’re grateful for your ability to create value for others and evolve.
6. When facts in litigation aren’t believed by the trier of fact where you face fines, jail, and/or unfavorable rulings you’re grateful that you had the opportunity to tell what happened.
7. When you can no longer drive a vehicle, you’re grateful for public transportation and private sector transportation programs.
8. When your health declines, you’re grateful for still being alive and having what abilities you still have.
9. When you’re wronged by people, you’re grateful for all the positive people in your life.
10. When your life appears to be in turmoil, you’re grateful that you were born to even have a shot at life.
Positive Masters is an e-commerce store at www.positivemasters.com, which provides lifestyle practices, creative writing, apparel, accessories, and fashion to boost your happiness and counter any stress, anxiety, or sadness you may be facing. We offer free shipping for purchases of $50 or more!
Be quick on your actions. Have patience on your results.
Be quick on your actions. Whenever I have an idea, I start typing it down as soon as possible on my app for notes on my smart phone or laptop. Sometimes I write it down in my notebook. Next, I research and write my plan and strategy. If it looks doable, I execute my actions stated in my plan. I do my best to work on my small goals daily. Over time, these small goals compound, and so does my knowledge, skills, and relationships. If itβs a physical activity, I read up on it and then begin practicing it. If I enjoy the activity, I add it to my arsenal of physical exercises.
Have patience on your results. Many successful people say it takes 10 years or more to achieve our big goals. I donβt consider myself a successful person, but for all the things Iβve envisioned achieving, it took me about 6 to 7 years to accomplish them, whether it be a high-scoring soccer player in my teenage years, becoming a lawyer and politician, and reaching certain benchmarks for my business ventures. Of course, on my journey towards my goals, Iβve had numerous small failures and a few big ones. However, my failures gave me valuable lessons, skills, and some good relationships that adds to my ever-growing foundation. Currently, Iβm reinventing myself and working on several business projects that has been very challenging, even uncomfortable at times. Iβll keep working hard to succeed, yet always be ready to adjust and evolve when things donβt go as planned. Iβm doing all I can to be patient with my results.
If youβre impatient on your results, youβll get frustrated with your failures and criticize your progress as being too slow. Further, your stress and anxiety will rise. Impatience on your results may cause you to give up on your dreams before you could fully know your potential. For me, it would kill me to not know the extent of my potential, win or lose.
I hope these practices can help you as much as it helps me. I wish you the best in all your endeavors!
[I wrote this article for Positive Masters, an e-commerce store at www.positivemasters.com , which provides lifestyle practices, creative writing, apparel, accessories, and fashion to boost your happiness and counter any stress, anxiety, or sadness you may be facing. The store offers free shipping for purchases of $50 or more!]
We can do a lot when we’re single because we can push ourselves to the limits until our body and mind needs to sleep. Being on our own, we have a great amount of control of our direction and momentum. However, being alone can be lonely at times.
A relationship with a significant other can either boost us or slow us down. It can make us happier or more miserable. ππͺ
When you fall in love, how far are you willing to go? How much are you willing to sacrifice? When things aren’t going right, do you follow your gut feelings, and if so, to what extent? β€π
By the way, I love Game of Thrones!!! βπΊπ²π₯
Even as adults we’re still trying to figure out our own life.
Get ready for the new kids.
They’ll rise, they’ll fall.
No matter what, they’ll find their way through it all.
– Jon Riki Karamatsu, Poem, 5/31/19 –
Every older generation seems to criticize the younger ones. We can guide the younger generations in a positive way, but in the end, the children will choose their own destiny by trying, failing, and succeeding on their interests and passions.
We control our own destiny, and influence those coming up. The children are our future. They learn by observing us adults. If we yell and scream all the time, they’ll become adults yelling and screaming at their family and at people at work, maybe even at strangers in the public. Peace starts with us, and it continues with the legacy we leave behind by those who were influenced by us. Let’s choose kindness, love, empathy, and compassion to make our world more peaceful!
Often times we’re so focused, even obsessed on #winning the big business projects, the marathons, that we bypass the smaller ones that could play a huge role in building us up. For me, the big business projects take a long time and until then, I don’t make any income from them. Recently, I’ve had to adjust and include small to medium projects in order to get quicker turnarounds for income to help sustain myself financially. It can be stressful at times not knowing the future.
What are your strategies for your goals? Do you include small to medium projects with your large projects?
Our mindset is key to our daily hustle. When we have a setback, it’s challenging to maintain our optimism. Our workflow gets interrupted by our disappointment and anxiety. π»
Having someone positive to work with can be a huge factor. Lately, I’ve been working with my friend Claire at Starbucks @starbucks who I became friends with while at Pearl City High School. She’s building an E-commerce business. We keep motivating each other to keep pushing forward every day. We place tough deadlines on ourselves in order to accelerate our progress. I’m so happy to have reconnected with Claire! I don’t feel as alone as before, working on projects that face a high level of risk .
Keep moving forward on your vision every day! If you can find a positive work friend who motivates you, even better! π
“If love is all-powerful, can it survive the deepest divides caused by anger and suffering?”
I wrote this sentence as I was preparing my query letters to literary agencies for my second novel, a historical fiction about a friendship that is born between an Iraqi boy and girl while in a hospital after surviving a suicide bomb.
I became a lawyer and politician with this goal in mind through the laws and programs I created or supported.
I enjoy business because #commerce can connect people when a great value is provided.
I love writing fiction because you can touch the souls of people by evoking their emotions through the struggles your characters go through. If you can make a reader have compassion and empathy for a character they would have disliked or even hated but for the story, then you’ve played a small role in bridging the division created by human judgment. Such stories can be adapted into audio and visual form such as audio books and movies to reach a greater audience.
Nonfiction writing can play a role in our self-development in not just our career but our personal development to attain inner peace. If all of us are at peace, the world will be at peace.
So what do you think about attaining world peace? If we break it down into bite size pieces and work on ourselves and help others every single day, it’s possible right!
May peace be with you! Sending you positive energy!
What is your mantra? Is there a #word or #phrase that #inspires and #motivates you? Many Buddhists chant #mantras or have them sounded internally in one’s thoughts. They are either repeated continuously for some time or just sounded once. Mantras can keep our mind awakened with a crystal clear #vision of our lives and world filled with #love and #positivity . A #mantra can #motivate us to keep working on a practice that helps us maintain our positive #lifestyle .
Of the many #practices I do to keep myself #happy and motivated, it’s amazing how this simple #practice of speaking your mantra daily can boost your entire your day. For example, my mantra is “gratitude.” Gratitude is a practice in itself. I learned how to be #grateful from my mom since I was a little kid. She would always be telling me about how good and useful certain products are. While driving, she would compliment on how smooth a road was. From the moment I wake up, I tell myself, “I’m grateful to be alive.” I’m super grateful to be able to strive for all kinds of ideas. I’m extremely grateful for all my loved ones. On my bad days, by focusing on all the things I’m grateful for, I’m able to get some wins. In fact, my suffering has played a role in expanding my gratitude, which I wrote about in previous posts.
Pictured on my wrist is a bracelet with “Gratitude” engraved on it by My Intent @myintent . Also pictured on my wrist is my Jodo Shu Buddhist prayer beads from its headquarters in Kyoto, Japan, given to me by one of the head Bishops when he was in Hawaii in 2018.
Everyday speak out your mantra and attack your day with the light of positivity!
Howzit! What’s up! I love this moment with my #niece on February 16, 2019 at Salt Our Kaka’ako @saltourkakaako in Honolulu, Hawaii. Everyday, #children #learn exponentially with their desire to find out what they don’t understand. They have an immense amount of #curiosity . The children in our lives can inspire us to continue being #curious and have that excited #desire to learn.
Stay curious my friends! Sending positive energy to you!
Attached to my REI @rei Bookpacker Plus #backpack is a little blue Daruma I bought in Japan some years ago. A Daruma is a Japanese handmade doll. When you make a #goal , you color one eye. When you achieve your goal, you color in the other eye. Notice how the doll is round. If it gets knocked down, it’ll get back up. That’s how we should be with our #goals – #tenacious and #determined . I read that a blue Daruma is for our #learning goals. For me, learning is extremely important because we can create value for others by mixing our #ideas with the #knowledge we attain. If we can learn 1% or more everyday, we can surprise ourselves on how far we can go! I enjoy products like Daruma dolls to #motivate me to keep working towards my #vision !
Focused and typing on my @apple #macbookpro while listening to music with my @bose #bosesoundsport as I’m in transit on Honolulu’s awesome bus system on 4/30/2019! Maximizing my productivity! I’m looking forward to Honolulu’s rail system to be completed! Keep crushing everything you’re striving for my friends!
I dedicate this poem to all you working on your dreams. Like many of you, I’m going through the process. Despite the tears, anxiety, and stress, keep working at it day by day! By doing so, we will improve ourselves by 1% or more everyday. No matter what, we will gain knowledge, skills, and relationships! Getting our dream is the bonus.
I have so much #gratitude for Starbucks @starbucks , especially the @waikelestarbucks @waikelepo because the baristas are so nice and the #vibe is good. I can #work there for 10 hours straight. Pictured here are some free samples: a brownie and the Pink Drink! Grateful ! Got my constant companion, my @apple #macbookpro #laptop ! π»
For the past few years, I feel like almost every month or two, someone I know dies. My last poem was about racing against time. It’s the 9th time since 2004 that I’ve titled a post on my website “Racing Against Time.” We have to go all-out on what we want to do before our time in this realm expires. I’m super #thankful to have lived this long and experienced many things I envisioned #accomplishing but I still have so much more on my mind that I need to execute before I die. I’m quadrupling down on my work and going harder now! π»
My friends, keep going, keep loving, and keep smiling! π
I have so much #gratitude for this free sample and the nice #baristas at Starbucks @starbucks @waikelestarbucks !!! My companion is in the backdrop, my @apple #macbookpro #laptop .
I’m a strong believer in having a positive mindset in order to be happier and more fulfilled in life. Β In this post, I would like to point out the importance of us having a growth mindset, which is believing that our abilities and intelligence can be developed. Β We can develop our knowledge and skills by reading and practicing everyday. Β The more we work on our knowledge and skills, the better we get. Β If we keep up this daily practice, over time, we may attain the knowledge and become very good at the skills we envisioned ourselves achieving.
I like to schedule in my Google calendar blocks of time to learning and building skills and I color code them according to the subject matter. Β I count each 30-minute period of learning or practicing as a “win” in my Count My Wins program I created for myself. Β This program gives me a natural high from the happy chemicals released when I finish each 30-minute self-development session. I’m a very curious person so I push myself even in areas I’m unfamiliar with. Β I really want to become a better person mentally, spiritually, and physically.
Have fun in your self-development! Β Crush it!
3 of my daily practices: growth mindset, mindfulness, and gratitude.
(I took a picture of these plants and trees in Waikele, Hawaii on March 12, 2019. They represent growth in our growth mindset practice. I’m always mindful of the beauty around me. I’m grateful to experience such simple pleasures.)
With the passing of my aunty JoAnn Matsumoto on February 1, 2019 due to pneumonia, I’ve fallen deeper into sadness. I feel an emptiness in my soul. Everyday I practice gratitude, mindfulness, meditation, creative writing, and my many other positive practices to keep moving forward. Nothing seems to matter to me except for those I love and my fiction and nonfiction writing for my far-reaching entertainment company. Everything in the stories I create embodies what my aunty JoAnn was: loving, caring, compassionate, emphatic, and positive. All my worse problems are small in comparison to losing my aunty. I would go to prison for my driving under the influence charge and lose more money with start-ups to have her back.
Yesterday, March 7, 2019, I attended the funeral services for my aunty JoAnn. She’s my mom’s cousin. She was like a sister for my mom Laraine and her sisters aunty Jamie and aunty Maydeen and brother Wilson because she stayed with them and their parents when she moved to Oahu for college from Hawaii island and spent so much time with them up to her recent passing.
My friends, cherish every moment with your loved ones. Them being with us makes our problems small. We can always make our comeback but we can’t get our loved ones back in physical form once they’re gone. We can always find ways to make money but that stuff doesn’t impact us the way good people do. I love you all. May peace be with you.
Fade out or keep going? What are we chasing after in this competitive and sometimes cruel world? Money? Power? Fame? When you reach it, you get attacked by others and punished more severely. Is it worth it? I think most of us want to be happy and at peace. There’s something beautiful in fading out from the craziness of society to be with your own soul in a peaceful and quiet life. Maybe live a simple life near the ocean or up in the mountains. It sounds so nice to meditate, read, research, write, create art, produce content that helps others, build a service for others using technology, and only hang out with those who lift your spirit. I’m not saying to completely cut ourselves off from the world. We could still continue our hustle to create value for others from afar, only coming back to society for our loved ones and for our most passionate projects. Do you feel this sometimes? If this was possible would you try it?
This is a picture of the sunset in Waikele, Hawaii on 2/19/19.
Since I was young, I would dream or have visions of what I wanted to achieve or experience. I observed people who were at a level I aspired to be. Then I would relentlessly work on my skills & knowledge everyday for hours. Over many years, usually at least 7 years, I would attain my dreams or at least a portion or variation of them. I would like to note that I had many failures too.
When I was about 9 years old, I was determined to become a better soccer player. I admired a skilled & speedy soccer player, Shane Uemoto who played as a wing forward on the Pearl City High School soccer team & had number 12 on his jersey. I loved the exciting way he played the game & how he was well-liked by his teammates. Shane was also a very good student, eventually becoming an accountant as an adult.
I would often practice soccer by myself for many hours in addition to the practices with my team. I would train by myself at parks or in my yard until dark & run up & down the hill of my street or at parks to build up my speed. I played with the ball in the house & watched soccer videos over & over on ball handling & strategy. I ran several miles from my house to Pearl City High School to get a peek at Shane & his teammates practicing. I remember riding a school bus on a field trip & I had a vision of Shane running alongside of the bus. Funny right! π Anyways, after a number of years, I ended playing as a right forward on the Pearl City High School soccer team. I scored a whole bunch of goals & assisted others in scoring goals. I proudly wore the number 7 on my jersey & was so elated to live my dream!!!
As an adult, I continue to work hard daily on my dreams & observe amazing people in public service, business & the arts, areas I have a passion for. I’m just as relentless & obsessive as I was when I was a kid in love with soccer. I may not be wearing number 7 on a soccer jersey but it’s in my soul everyday.
Dim the light of my laptop.
Darkness moves all over me.
I play a song.
The melodic sound pulls my soul.
I float to a place where only emotions flow.
The feelings of love overwhelms me.
Tingling sensations move throughout me.
I cry.
β Poem, Jon Riki Karamatsu, 2/22/19 β
I wrote this poem in about a minute in the early morning of 2/22/19. Poems are a way for us to write at a higher emotional realm. It’s therapeutic for me. When I was younger, I would go to events & gatherings that often involved alcohol. I would work super hard, nonstop & saw charity events, business mixers, & social gatherings as a break to look forward to, a reward for the hard work I’ve done. Socializing with positive people is good but the alcohol part led me to my DUI incidents, one I called the police on myself, the other I was placed in jail & charged with refusal when I asked questions that only a prosecuting attorney would ask, which I was at the time. There’s other ways to relieve stress, anxiety, & sadness. I spend a great majority of my time with my laptop, my partner. Together, we produce things for myself & others. I catch the bus & only go to events if it’s something I have to do for my business or client, or if it’s for someone I care about. Sometimes I get rides with my mom or my business partner.
To heal my suffering, I have to go within me. By working on creative writing, especially fiction, I can live other lives, experience different places, & fall in love. The words we put on paper evoke our five senses & feelings. Every journey, like our own lives, has its conflicts. Every protagonist has his or her flaws & vulnerability. Without conflicts & character flaws, there is no story. If we did write it, it would be boring. So if you have problems & flaws in your life, you have a story! You’re our protagonist, our hero who we are rooting for!!! Keep going my friends!!!
JON RIKI KARAMATSU 