Empowering Potential Provided by Problems in Paradise
Empowering Potential Provided by Problems in Paradise âĄđșđ€Ł
I'm in Maui, first stop in a 'coming of age' adventure with my 16 yr old son Noah and our first 24 hrs have given us a plethora of problems to deal with, which I'll explain in a mo.
The invitation/agreement for the trip is:
đYou get to go anywhere in the world with one parent for max 2 weeks.
đYou have to show a strong desire and reason for where you want to go that is life enhancing and appreciating.
đYou collaborate with parent in all aspects of planning the trip and understanding costs involved.
đIt's backpacker style with some perks!
đYou lead the trip as much as possible whilst there.
For anyone curious about why we do this (and yes I do truly feel blessed to be able to even offer this)...the idea is promoting individuation AND collaboration/connection; overcoming obstacles; appreciation of culture, people, money, time, choice, beauty; following heart's desire; general adulting training in a presence orientated way!
My eldest son Jack chose a Natural/Cultural History tour of Italy with Dad a few years back.
Noah by default gets me and chose Hawaii:
Open Water Dive training in Maui followed by diving with Manta Rays on Big Island. Added bonus of Volcano action!
So just 24hrs or so in, paradise has thrown us some serious adulting potential!
âĄCredit Card blocked so couldn't escape Carpark in rental car on landing in Maui (oops I forgot to tell them I was going overseas, poor adulting Moi!). Luckily Noah to the rescue, after some car lane shenanigans, as his debit card bank wasn't so risk aware LOL.
âĄExpensive new sim cards fail to work after hrs in store trying to sort...unrefundable!
âĄTrying to navigate with no paper map, no google.
âĄFlat tyre in rental car to sort and accom 15 min drive from anywhere.
âĄDespite power, no actual plugs in Tentalow (glamping type accommodation) for powering almost useless phones...luckily wifi there though.
âĄNo utensils, pots or ANYTHING in camp kitchen except a BBQ.
âĄArriving in Lahaina on a Sat night to get food (flat tyre, no map, jet lagged, HUNGRY)...tad overwhelmed with busy-ness, paid parking, 'no room at the inn' in every cafe/restaurant we went to.
âĄTrying to sleep the first night, realising that along with our beautiful beach front location we are also adjacent to the main road with trucks passing constantly!
To our mutual credit, after a few early morning release tears (just me) the following day when I realised the car tyre was flat again and we had no food for breakfast...we both calmly moved step by step through each challenge, with Noah taking the lead where possible...exactly as planned of course, thankyou universe đ€Ł!
đ«24 hrs later and we have an esky full of breakfast food, aluminium (i know but needs must) plates for the BBQ/fire, compostable cutlery/plates, a new tyre, a Maui paper map and lots of screenshot google maps from camp wifi, sleep restored mental health (traffic noise disappeared into bsckground), mind mapped the local area, credit card unblocked, navigated getting to Haleakala National Park/Volcano and done an awesome sunset walk led by Noah, establishing a new phase of relationship with each other! đ«
Phew...
I'm now sitting by the public recharge station which is charging my power bank at a snails pace, while Noah is at day 1 dive training.
And you know what?
I'm enjoying the contrast.
I can feel the undercurrent of deep stillness and power that is here in Maui. The beauty is evident all around inspite of the hustle and bustle of tourism, with all of it's detritus in denser areas.
Its a bit like the feeling you get when diving, being the quiet observer.
I'm curious about what the next few weeks will bring!
Mahalo
Rebecca
