On moving to Maui and hunting for home Pt. 2

There’s a magic associated with the Hawaiian islands. It’s said that if you’re meant to be here, things will coalesce serendipitously in your favor. Circumstances will iron themselves out in such a way that you, without a doubt, believe the fact that you are meant to be here. The spirit of aloha will touch you, envelop you, and deliver to you what you’ve been looking for, if you’re wise enough to recognize it, that is.

It’s been a while since my last post, chronicling the weird and wonderful tales of trying to make a home in Maui. I was on my own, putting my feelers out there and searching for direction in any sense of the word. I was tied up doing a job that wasn’t “me” and I was living on a part of the island where I thought I’d have a hard time meeting people. I felt far removed from my goals and intentions for coming here.

Then it happened: I met a guy.

This could very well be a gag me moment, but I’ll try to spare the ever-so-sweet details that might have you throwing up in your mouth a little bit. Just suffice it to say that Jonathan entered my life and helped me find focus and direction.

As most relationships happened, we met and started off friends. We were both in similar boats, just having moved to Maui, him from Utah and me from the Big Island. Thus, we began a job hunt together. We’re both in the hospitality industry, so we spent hours combing Craigslist and dropping off resumes, fishing for leads and crossing our fingers for work.

In between looking for work, we’d traverse around the island getting to know our new home, driving some amazing cliffs, playing in the ocean, enjoying countless meals out, sharing wine and strawberries at the beach…it wasn’t long before a romance developed!

Fast forward about a month and here we are, living in north Kihei in a green little Ohana (detached home on a shared property) right near the beach. Life has a funny way of working itself out!

Jon is a local boy, having grown up in Oahu. Meeting him was clever luck because he has this inherent island sonar that allows him to know most of the secret spots, where all of the good food and manages to talk story on a personal level with everyone we meet. What a great catch!

With his help and my determination, I’ve made a home on Maui. I found a 1989 Jeep Comanche Maui cruiser AKA Da Beast, a job, a house and a man. Somehow this all transpired for me in what seemed like the blink of an eye.

I even had a chance to visit Oahu for the first time, which was incredible. I’ll be posting more about that later.

In other words, things have come together for me. Though I’m still settling in and trying to find a groove, keeping my eyes peeled for new friends and volunteer opportunities, I have a lot to be thankful for. I know Maui has welcomed me with open arms, providing plenty of amazing things all at once, giving me reasons to stay and make a home.