In the afternoon of Saturday September 2, 2017, I moved my work from my home to Starbucks in Waipio, Hawaii. I gave it a shot to try and finish an analysis on another redline of the contract for our land deal. I spent 4.25 hours, but it looks like I have to continue later. My energy level has been boosted though. I love my Apple MacBook Pro, which allows me to work anywhere and anytime!!! Let’s go some more!!!
Starbucks is the company I go to, to develop my mind. 24 Hour Fitness is the company I go to, to develop my body. Jon Riki Karamatsu is the company I go to, to develop my soul. Sending you positive energy in all that you pursue!!! (This is how I cruise at my house, Hawaiian style. 😁🤙).
My friend Brandon Mitsuda gave me a good luck piggy bank to attract capital, cookbook with recipes from the top chefs in Hawaii, and a beverage to be drank for wins along the journey. I’m motivated to keep working hard every day, enjoy life, and have gratitude for the opportunities and little wins along the way.
As my 5-year old niece Elyse says since she was 2 years old, “I’m so happy!” I’m so happy to finish drafting a 75-page business plan that was overhauled to include 48 more pages of data, strategy, and content; and 6 financial spreadsheets for a project my business partners and I are moving closer to launching after 1 year and 10 months of sweat equity work. Gratitude for the small wins.
Jodo Mission of Hawaii’s Bon Dance on Saturday August 18 and 19, 2017 in Honolulu, Hawaii was a success. It feels so good to support culture and tradition that make Hawaii and our country so unique for all to enjoy! I’m honored to serve as President of Jodo Mission of Hawaii for the past 7 years and board member for the past 12 years.
The food was great with barbecue sticks, saimin, gyoza, chili and rice, andagi (Okinawan donuts), shave ice, and more. The dancers and taiko did performed well. I’m sure our ancestors are happy.
Mahalo to everyone who volunteered, and to all who came to enjoy the festivities! See you next year and may peace be with you and all those you touch.
Last day for Jodo Mission of Hawaii’s Bon Dance is today, Saturday August 19, 2017 from 6:30 P.M. to 9:30 P.M. at 1429 Maliki Street, Honolulu, Hawaii; food booths open from 4:30 P.M. The office number is 808-949-3995.
The Jodo Mission of Hawaii Bon Dance will be today August 18 and tomorrow 19, 2017 from 6:30 P.M. to 9:30 P.M. at 1429 Maliki Street, Honolulu, Hawaii; food booths open 4:30 P.M. for both nights, with Jizo bon prayer service at 5:45 P.M. on August 18, 2017. The office number is 808-949-3995.
We put up the yagura for the Bon Dance at Jodo Mission of Hawaii on Sunday August 13, 2017 from 8:00 A.M. to 10:00 A.M., followed by a lunch. The Jodo Mission of Hawaii Bon Dance will be on August 18 and 19, 2017 from 6:30 P.M. to 9:30 P.M. at 1429 Maliki Street, Honolulu, Hawaii; food booths open 4:30 P.M. for both nights, with Jizo bon prayer service at 5:45 P.M. on August 18, 2017. The office number is 808-949-3995.
Waiting for members of the 💔💖 club to share what I’ve learned in my journey of self-reflection. I’m trying to attain a higher level of inner peace. Transcend past all that we desire and all that pains us, and have gratitude for what currently exists around us.
Yesterday, August 3, 2017, I treated myself to Dunkin Donuts as a reward after I finished drafting a 28-page legal and business analysis for a land deal my business partners and I are trying to execute for a start-up company we are building. I worked 3 days in a row at Starbucks in Waipio typing this document for 7 to 8 hours straight a day. Dunkin Donuts recently opened a store near Honolulu International Airport, Hawaii, making its return back to the State of Hawaii. I gave my mom 2.5 donuts today when she came by to drop off food she made.
Sleep is key to our physical and mental health. It provides us the energy to exercise, work, and enjoy the day. Sleep also gives us the energy to overcome challenges. When I bought my place in 2003, I purchased a Simmons plush bed, which has foam and isolated pocket springs that has great back support and isolates movement, allowing me to continue to sleep even with movement on the other side. My bed is so comfortable.
Pictured just before getting picked up by my good friend Allen Yadao who I met while we served as Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys, to eat at Doraku in Kaka’ako, Honolulu, Hawaii, followed by the Mike Epps comedy show across the street at Blaisdell Concert Hall on July 22, 2017.
My good friend Allen Yadao and I at the Mike Epps comedy show at Blaisdell Concert Hall in Honolulu, Hawaii on July 22, 2017. Earlier, we ate at Doraku in Kaka’ako, Honolulu, Hawaii. Allen and I quickly became friends while we served as Honolulu Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys.
I was saddened to hear of the passing of Chester Bennington of Linkin Park on July 20, 2017 at the age of 41. He was also the lead singer for Dead By Sunrise and fronted Stone Temple Pilots from 2013 to 2015. His voice had a great range for melodic top 40 tracks to the hard screaming sounds of rock and roll that sometimes blended with rap by Mike Shinoda, the other frontman of Linkin Park.
Chester was authentic and open about his life, the struggles of his childhood when his parents became divorced, being sexually abused by an individual older than him, and getting bullied in school. He let out his frustration and suffering in his art and music. Much of his struggle resonates in the lyrics of the songs he helped write and through the sound of his voice. However, Chester also turned to drugs and alcohol to numb his pain. Even with his rise into a rockstar with amazing bands, he faced depression until he took his life.
As a politician in Hawaii, I worked on the issues of bullying, sex abuse, drugs, and mental health. I continued with some of this work while a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney and Legislative Liaison at the Department of the Prosecuting Attorney of the City and County of Honolulu. I left public service after being charged by the police for driving under the influence when I was stopped at a roadblock. Half the time I served in public service, I felt like I was dealing with power trips of politicians and judges, many with temper tantrums who were unable to put the issues above themselves. Now, I direct my efforts in helping the community through start-up business ventures, business law, and nonprofit organizations. If I succeed in building the businesses that I’m passionate about, I want to dedicate my money on causes that I’ve failed to achieve as a politician and government attorney such as building a peace curriculum in our schools to teach our children positive daily practices to reduce bullying, sex assault, verbal abuse and physical violence; and helping orphans of war receive water, food, medicine, clothes, toys, and an education.
The death of Chester by suicide hit me emotionally. I’ve been listening to Linkin Park since their beginning. I’m listening to Linkin Park songs as I write this post. I know the power of the darkness can haunt us, especially when we’re alone. At night and early morning is when they attack me. When they win, nothing matters – nothing. I know this. I live because I’ve created so many goals to work on. I work hard – so hard that it pushes away my pain – that is until I’m alone, then I have to start all over again. But I can’t just live by working. I want to love and be loved. I want to have fun. For these reasons, I created a system of practices I created that helps me to keep moving forward through gratitude, peace, and happiness. If you are facing anxiety and depression, these are the things I do to counter the darkness:
(1) Sleep – For maximum output, 7+ hours of sleep works for me.
(2) Exercise – Run, lifting weights, and swimming are some of the exercise I do that gives me a high and a feeling of confidence that I can achieve anything.
(3) Healthy Diet – Foods that have Vitamin B-complex and Vitamin C helps us against depression and anxiety. L-Theanine in green tea has a calming affect.
(4) Gratitude – I have gratitude for not just the big things, but also the many little things.
(5) Mindfulness – I live in the moment to be aware of the beauty and wonderful things around me. Mindfulness is what energizes our gratitude. The more mindful I am, the higher the level of my gratitude.
(6) Win-Win/Positive Thinking. There are wins in everything we do, even failure and bad incidents.
(7) Goals – I plan and execute my goals by a system that rewards small wins and big wins. It’s the process of the daily practice that gives us a rush of dopamine every time we achieve small wins, and in time, we get that satisfaction from attaining our big wins.
(8) Writing – Blog, journal, social media, fiction, and nonfiction. Writing is so therapeutic, and it feels good to send positive messages to my friends and network.
(9) Positive Relationships – Stay near positive people who will fire you up with good energy, and avoid negative people who drain your energy.
(10) Music – Soothing music is great while working, and when you need a lift, play a lively song and dance.
(11) Read and listen about amazing people – Exposure to people who overcame huge challenges keeps me motivated and thinking extraordinary with a mindset that anything is possible when you consistently work hard, build relationships, and learn.
(12) Go to your happy places – My happy places are beaches in Hawaii for relaxation and coffee shops for work.
(13) Ocean Therapy and Nature –For me, swimming in the ocean does wonders by heightening all my senses and revitalizing my vision for my life.
(14) Sunlight – Vitamin D3 from the sun helps us against anxiety and depression.
(15) Sensory Therapy – I enjoy lemon scented cologne, vanilla and lavender scented candles, hot and cold showers, and massages.
(16) Learn – Right now, I enjoy learning about subjects such as self-development, health, writing, Japanese language and culture, aviation, fuel, Iraq war, and orphans of war.
(17) Meditation – This practice calms my mind, body, and soul.
(18) Travel – Experiences at other locations creates wonderful memories and recharges our mind, body, and soul.
(19) Read Fiction – Experience other lifestyles and locations, feel the beauty of love, and do extraordinary things.
(20) Inspirational Movies and Television Shows
The following song, “Shadow of the Day” by Linkin Park expresses how I feel about the loss of Chester Bennington and the darkness that haunts us all.
Here is “Heavy” by Linkin Park, another song that moves me emotionally.
“Numb” by Linkin Park is a song that resonates with the frustration we feel after working so hard to be who we are, only to be attacked by others who want something, and punished harder by others because of who we’ve become, despite us still being human.
“Nobody Can Save Me” by Linkin Park. On a positive note, near the ending of the song, the lyrics goes:
I wanna fall wide awake now
So tell me it’s alright
Tell me I’m forgiven, tonight
And only I can save me now
I’m holding up a light
Chasing up the darkness inside
And I don’t wanna let you down
But only I can save me!
Been searching somewhere out there
For what’s been missing right here
I want to end this entry with a positive and motivational song by Linkin Park, “Battle Symphony.” Chester will live on through his music, loved ones, and fans. My heart goes out to him and his loved ones.
In life, we will have happy times, but there will be periods of challenges whether it be deaths of loved ones, illness, financial hardship, difficult relationships, bad work environments, spiteful law suits, violence, and/or prison time or penalties because of false or inaccurate statements. Gratitude is a powerful practice that helps us to always be mindful of all the good that we have in our lives. Through gratitude we can proceed through even our darkest days with the things we can control such as time with positive loved ones, exercise, meditation, writing, learning, passionate projects, helping others, and other positive things that keep us high above the things we can’t control, like negative events and people. Gratitude keeps our energy positive with love, compassion, and empathy that helps us rise over anxiety, sadness, and anger. Positivity spreads when we share it with others. Some of the most beautiful pictures of light occur when it pierces through darkness. Likewise, gratitude makes us appreciate the light or good even among darkness. I took this peaceful picture of sunlight glowing around the dark clouds at Haleiwa beach on July 6, 2017. If you have challenging times, I hope this post helps you to still appreciate and enjoy life. May peace be with you. With Warmest Aloha, Jon
I did some volunteer work to put up the otoba for obon for Jodo Mission of Hawaii on July 9, 2018 from 8:00 A.M. to 10:00 A.M. We always pray to our ancestors, but obon is a time when we have special services and bon dance to celebrate our ancestors. The long white cloth is connecting the temple with our otoba or wooden plank with ancestor family names. I will chair the Board of Directors meeting at 11:45 A.M., which is part of my duties as President.
Great article on 7 steps to be happy. Here they are with my interpretation and input! Strive for a great day everyday!
Have something to look forward to: Plans with a friend or a treat for yourself such as nice dish or dessert.
Manage your mood: Do what gives you a feeling of control. Avoid doing things that throws your emotions off, save it for later in the day.
Eat breakfast: Studies show that breakfast makes us feel emotionally happier.
Do something you dread: Getting something done that is challenging or has been bothering you provides a sense of accomplishment.
Send a “thank you” email or text.
Plan how you’ll deal with challenges: Think about the worst that could happen and it probably won’t but if it does, you will feel prepared and ready to handle the issue.
Kiss somebody you love: I don’t have anyone to kiss so I’ll pretend. When I do have someone to kiss, I will definitely kiss her whenever we go our separate ways.
Last night, June 28, 2017, I cooked chicken with Tuscan garlic seasoning blend, Hawaiian salt, a little pepper, and a little olive oil on my grilled cast iron pan. I also cooked onions and bell pepper, and made a side of brown rice.
Like many of you, I strive for things that have a great amount of uncertainty that create anxiety and stress. I wish I was a superhuman, immune to such feelings but I’m not. So I make an effort on overcoming anxiety and stress with many practices like gratitude, mindfulness, win-win thinking, exercise, balanced diet, writing, music, nature, time with positive people, sensory therapy, meditation, and such. Whenever I work on any of my goals that has a high risk of losing time and money such as elected politics, business projects, and fiction and nonfiction books, I try to mitigate my risk with research, strategy, and hard work, but no matter what, a degree of uncertainty will always exist.
To alleviate my anxiety on the uncertainty, I practice win-win thinking or positive thinking by telling myself, “When I invest time and money into a project I’m passionate about, at worse, I get a higher education like attaining another college degree. At best, I get a return on my investment on top of my education!” By looking at my goals in this manner, I see the outcome as a win no matter what the outcome because my time and money are used towards bettering myself in gaining more knowledge, skills, and relationships, but if I succeed, I can get a higher education and make a living out of what I love! Stay positive everyone!
Linked below is one of the most inspiring interviews I’ve listened to. Entrepreneur, author, and podcast show host James Altucher interviews Jon Morrow who has been paralyzed from the neck down since birth, but despite his challenges he has done amazing things in his life including creating multi-million dollar businesses.
I cried several times as I listened to this podcast interview late one evening earlier this week while I was laying in my bed in the dark, in my attempt to sleep. Jon Morrow is such an inspiration.
When he was a very little boy, he almost died a number of times because his disease caused him to get pneumonia, and because his lungs were so weak, his mother would push down hard on his chest to get the mucous out of his lungs so he could breathe and survive. However, by doing this, young Jon was in great pain because his ribs got fractured by his mothers’ pressure.
At [26:25] of the interview, Jon stated: “When I got into kindergarten, another kid called me disabled, and I said, ‘What does that mean?’ And, he started laughing.” Jon’s teacher came over and said, “You don’t know what that means?” He didn’t. So he asked his mom. She thought about it and said, “It means you can’t do something as well as someone else. But it also goes the other way.” She said, “Everyone in the world can’t do something as well as someone else…” So everyone in a sense is disabled. Jon took inventory of his skills. Then he mastered them.
Later, Jon almost died from a multi-vehicle accident. He went through a lot of pain and surgeries. In another bad turn of events, Jon had been successfully raising multi-millions of dollars for his father’s development company but the company went down after the 2008 market crash and at that time, to make it worse, his mother lost her job. Despite these challenges, he went to Mexico where he could get better healthcare than the United States and spent long hours day after day in developing his online training and education companies in regards to finance, writing techniques, blogging, online web development, online marketing, etc. With great effort and perseverance, in combination with his prior years of work and blogging, Jon mixed his various skills and experiences to successfully launch his companies.
Do whatever it takes to have that inner peace: sleep, meditation, self-reflection, exercise, nutritious food, vitamins, nature, ocean therapy, sunlight, aroma therapy, mindfulness, gratitude, forgiveness, goal planning, learning, reading, writing, art, music, movies, massage, hugs, time with loved ones, helping others, and anything that makes you feel good! If all of us are at peace, the world will be at peace!
Here’s a picture from my short 2.77 mile run along the coast of Ko’olina on 5/15/2017. After my run, I swam the length of Lagoon 4 six times. Exercise and being in and near the ocean is helpful in alleviating stress and anxiety. I’m grateful to live in Hawaii.
One of my influencers, Shakyamuni Buddha, a human who chose the path of love and compassion, and one of the greatest teachers of self-development who wanted all of us to be happy and peaceful as we face our difficult feelings of sadness, fear, and anger. Gratitude, mindfulness, empathy, and compassion can quell the dark side in all of us and bring out the light. We too must strive to become a Buddha. #buddha #siddarthagautama #siddartha #siddarthabuddha #shakyamuni #shakyamunibuddha #peace #innerpeace #love #compassion #gratitude #mindfulness #empathy
Swam at Ko’olina on the evening of May 4, 2017. Peaceful. #beach #hawaii #oahu #koolina #koolinabeach #disneyaulani #fourseasonsresortoahuatkoolina #swim #peaceful
I like to do a gratitude prayer to the universe in the morning, followed by a meditation. I start off by lighting a pair of candles on a display with stones and an oil diffuser. Then I start an app on my smartphone that plays soothing sounds of water and calming instrumental music.
In my gratitude prayer, I express my thanks for my loved ones, the ability to experience life, useful things I have, the beauty of nature, and much more. Throughout the day, I would continue to be thankful for many things.
I meditate by clearing my thoughts and breathing slowly. After some minutes in emptiness, I envision what I will accomplish for the day.
To practice this, all you need is ten minutes, but you can always go longer. It’s a good way to start your day with positivity and clarity. Sometimes I do a gratitude prayer and meditation at night or whenever I need to stabilize my soul after facing some challenges. There are studies that show how gratitude and meditation practices reduces stress and benefits your overall health. Have fun with your gratitude and meditation practice! Aloha!
The light is so much brighter when we’re in the dark. For it is darkness that makes us appreciate the light. The challenges of life and the evils of humankind should make us even more grateful for what positive things we have in our lives, and the many good people there are among us. Let the force of darkness motivate us to maximize our daily practice of love and compassion.
Stretch or Stretchy Boy as we like to call him is slowly fading out. He’s more relaxed now compared to earlier so he’s spending his last moments at home. I’ve been sitting by him this afternoon and this evening. I don’t want him to go, but I know it is near. Through him, I appreciate life, and make an effort to be mindful of all the good things I have in my life, especially the simple pleasures of life like being around those you love. For Stretch, he was always so happy to see us, enjoyed walks, going to the beach, and his favorite foods. He reminds me of the importance of loving others in the purest form as he demonstrated it towards us. I love Stretch with all of my heart.
Spending time with my mom, dad, sister Mia and brother-in-law Mike, niece Elyse and Sophie, sister Lara and her fiancee Ross, family dog Stretch, and all my relatives.
The time I spent with my late grandparents Tadao and Ellen Sakai and Maurice Toshio and Bessie Karamatsu.
Loving love.
Hanging out with my friends.
Writing down my goals.
Networking with positive and ambitious people.
Drafting my plans and strategies for my goals.
Writing fiction. I still need to get a novel published.
Watching movies. I wish I could produce movies. Maybe someday.
Building new companies by sharing ideas and skills with other entrepreneurs.
Playing law and politics for creative business ventures.
Listening to music and producing music events.
Traveling to different places around the world.
Tasting great food.
Exercising, especially running outdoors while listening to EDM as I strategize on my goals.
I’m so lucky to have you in my life. Here’s a song that reflects how I feel in my heart: “Thankful” by Feki.
Stretch is such a kind and loyal member of our family. My dad got him as a little puppy in 2001. He was recently diagnosed with cancer, but fortunately, his walk and appetite has gotten better, and my mom said he even barked recently. When I dog-sat him just about month and a half ago, he ran out of the gate and down the street, which forced me to take him for a walk. I think he knew that that moment was the last time he would be able to run like that. I love him so much.
We humans can learn a lot from dogs such as unconditional love, loyalty, and mindfulness. Dogs appreciate the present moment, one of the key teachings in Buddhism, in that we must have gratitude for our lives, loved ones, and opportunities. With gratitude, we can overcome the challenges of life, and achieve peace and happiness for a great majority of our precious life.
When I was a baby, my mom would talk and read to me.
As a toddler, she made me do math and English workbooks by rewarding me with a penny for every page I accomplished.
As a kid, my mom drove me to soccer, baseball, Aikido, cub scouts, and many other activities until my dad could meet us after he finished work.
My mom and dad attended all my soccer games and watched me progress from an average player to one of the State’s highest scorers.
While I struggled to find out who I was during my teenage years, my mom helped me through it.
On the day I graduated from high school, my mom and dad that was there.
When I broke up with my first girlfriend and saw my college grade point average drop, my mom comforted me.
When I made my college comeback by raising my GPA and graduated from the University of Hawaii with a B.A. in Political Science my mom and dad was there.
My mom and dad flew to Washington State to see me graduate from Gonzaga University School of Law, and later that year they saw me sworn in as a lawyer under the Hawaii State Bar Association in the Hawaii State Senate.
A year later, my mom and dad witnessed me get sworn into the Hawaii State House of Representatives.
When I was in jail for DUI, my mom and dad was there to be bail me out.
When I got attacked by the media, political opponents, and haters, my mom and dad stood by me.
Every time I was feeling down from angry people, power hungry politicians, tyrant and tantrum-filled judges, and selfish business persons, my mom was there to listen.
With every plan and goal I came up with for my business and political endeavors, my mom always told me to give it a try.
Even now, my mom is alway there to cheer me on. Through her I’ve learned that when we strive for what we want, anything is possible, and that having empathy and compassion is the best way to live.
I dedicate this song “Be As You Are” by Mike Posner and remixed by Jordan XL to my mom and to all of you mothers out there.
As I mentioned in my “Positive Living Practice and Stages Practice” post, I’m creating a Positive Living Practice series that highlights products and services that can help us with our health, wealth, and happiness so that we can live a happy and fulfilling life. By “health,” I mean good physical, mental, and spiritual health. For “wealth,” I define it as time, knowledge, and ideas. And “happiness” is the wonderful joy we get from gratitude, compassion, and love.
Today, I’m discussing a challenge that we all face within our lives – “Stress.” Have you ever received another person’s wrath because of that person’s weakness in not being able to handle his or her stress? Or worse, have you ever directed your anger at another person and blamed your bad behavior because of the stress your were going through?
How often we experience stress is within our control. I personally believe that 99% of all challenges we face are either minor or can be resolved. In regards to the 1% of challenges that we can’t control, we can become stronger by accepting it, learning from it, and moving on.
Studies have shown that stress can cause us emotional and physical problems. Further, if we manage it in the wrong way, we could hurt our relationships and reputation. Instead of handling stress in a destructive way that hurts ourselves and others, we can address it in a positive way that spreads waves of positive energy to others. In this post, I will share with you my strategies to reduce stress. I also include a poster on how to beat stress and boost happiness by Happify, a company that helps you to develop happiness skills through its online activities and articles. You can check out Happify at http://www.happify.com.
If we can reduce stress, we will be healthier physically, mentally, and spiritually; and be stronger in our practice of gratitude, compassion, and love. With good health and happiness, we can make the best use of our time, absorb more knowledge, and come up with more ideas.
The following are some of the things that I like to do to reduce stress:
Exercise: Run indoors or outdoors and lift weights.
Dream of what I want to achieve.
Type my ideas.
Write down and update my goals.
Envision the outcome of my goals.
Listen to music.
Spend time with my family.
Be around positive people.
Have gratitude for all the good things I have in my life.
Meditate.
Self-Reflect.
See the positive in every failure.
Try to get a good sleep and take a nap when I need a boost.
Listen to podcast shows that highlight positive and successful people.
Write fictional stories.
Read novels.
Learn through reading or practice.
Watch a television show or movie that inspires me.
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JON RIKI KARAMATSU 