How Making Videos About Hawaii Has Changed Me

okay so at the close of 2023 I've been thinking a lot about this YouTube channel and how I've changed because of making videos about Hawaii been doing it for almost 5 years now and over that time I've noticed that I've I've changed and the changes that I've gone through the three changes that I want to share in this video they're interestingly tied to the audiences who have found this YouTube channel so I'm going to try do this in one take we'll see how that goes my kids are asleep wife went out shopping it's New Year's Eve weekend and I'm here so I I just thought I'd turn on the camera and and and share this the three audiences that I do have that I've found over time are people who are interested in moving to Hawaii people who are currently living in Hawaii locals uh and locals who have moved away and and so the three changes that I've seen in myself I I do want to there ort of tied to those three audiences and and so I thought that'd be kind of interesting to kind of go over and share so the first way that I've seen my self change is I've really had to Define what living with aloha means what the Aloha spirit means for me I know it's codified in Hawai revice statutes and in general I think local people we you know we talk about aloho right we we it's this almost buzz word that that we that we try to live our life by um but I don't know how many people actually take the time to think about what that means Aloha and how they show it demonstrate Aloha in very practical everyday ways and by making YouTube videos and having that audience of people who are thinking about moving to Hawaii I've had to really think about what that means uh it's no secret that U my opinion on on people you know moving thinking of moving to Hawaii it's no secret that my opinion on that is welcome you know I know that on social media online if you read a lot of the comments it's not always like that I in fact I think if you were to look at the majority of social media or or online content related to you know moving coming to Hawaii unless you're a realtor really most of that content is probably stay away right and and if you're someone who is thinking about moving to Hawaii that's probably the sentiment that that you've encountered when you when you've gone online and I hope that what my content has done because I'm thinking about what it means to to to live with Aloha I hope that there's there's some balance that you you see that okay not everyone may think that way when it comes to defining Aloha in my own life I I think there's there's a line in that definition and and I think dividing you know that line divides two trains of thought whether Aloha is unconditional or whether it's conditional and and very thin line but I think very distinct for me it's unconditional and that's not always easy it's not always easy to to show others Aloha because it takes a lot of Grace and forgiveness and friendliness and kindness especially when they may not deserve it but I think none of us really deserve it we're not perfect you know I mean look at the roads right you you drive around just let them cut in because there's probably times where you cut people off or or you made bad decisions on the road but for for me I fall into that you know unconditional Aloha where you just show it just because even if they don't reciprocate even if they don't thank you you just show it you know you just show it anyway and that's what I try to show to to that particular audience and I've had to really Define what that means for me you know like maybe before I didn't really think about it I didn't really care cuz I'm just from Hawaii right but as I've gotten older and especially as I have this YouTube channel I feel like I need to figure out what that really means to me I don't want to be one of those locals who speaks a lot about Aloha big talk right with Aloha but maybe in their personal life they not really showing all that much right like you wear the shirts you wear the you know that you get the sticker around the back of your car you know you throw you know shot every now and then but when it comes down to it it's really not maybe demonstrated as much and I I don't want to live my life that way if I'm going to say it and I really do believe it then it it should be demonstrated as best as I can again I'm not perfect but I I've always been under the impression that Aloha is for everyone and it's it's unconditional kindness and and love and and respect even if they don't they don't don't show that back so for me I really had to change in in that regard uh and uh without going too long the the second way that um probably talk more about that but the second way I've seen myself change is I've really had to in naking these videos I've really had to pay attention to what's going on here in Hawaii and and that audience I think who who cares is are local people who who live here so so me changing by paying attention more to what's going on in Hawaii I tie that with that audience that is is locally is locally here and when I was growing up and even when I went away for for school I didn't care about Hawaii I didn't care what was going on I mean I cared that I'm from Hawaii you know for sure but I didn't pay attention to what was going on I cared more about you know I cared about my schoolwork I cared about you know TV shopping food girls like basically everything besides what was actually going on in this state and because I'm now making these videos about Hawaii it's not just oldtime stuff you know like I love talking about oldtime stuff like how Hawaii used to be and oh I miss it so much you know the good old days and all that I love that but I've really had to pay attention to how Hawaii is today what what what is going on because while it would be great that I could know all the starting quarterbacks in the NFL or I knew batting averages and all that really that that that's not that important compared to who's your representatives who who who who are your politicians what are the policies that are that are coming up and and how is that going to affect our lives and and that's the personal choice for me I think I'm just getting old you know that's why I'm just getting older right and uh I just I I don't have as much time for those other things and I don't P place as much value in those other things because I'm I'm here now and and again making videos about Hawaii I feel like I I need to stay up to date on what's going on and I'm also curious and interested in what's going on now you know it's not just setting up my life right here but also I'm thinking about my kids life right the things that we decide today they're going to have impact on on on the future and and that's going to be my kids whether they're going to be living in Hawaii or not that's still going to be you know for them so I'm trying to really pay attention to that and be very mindful I I'm always surprised when when local people as speaking of this audience I'm also surprised when local people will come up to me or my wife or both and like just say hi and talk story and it's very very flattering you know to to meet people and you know to to talk and and I know sometimes in passing you know we're busy you know we got two young kids so and I know it's hard but I really appreciate it and even for the people who who don't you know who don't say hi you know I I still appreciate you know the the fact that they're watching the videos you know they support the channel and they're interested in in the things that interest me that I think would interest those people and learning about Hawaii keeping up to date it's not always fun or interesting but it's important and I'm trying to to make sure that I keep track of those things because you know I'm not that old but I bet you if you ask some of these guys who are in their 60s 70s they remember how ho I used to be and I think if you look back at some of the problems that they remember when they were younger it's the same stuff we're talking about today I had to do this project once where they we're we're kind of talking about the issues of Hawaii per decade basically from statehood all the way up to 2000s and so I was I was reading through all these old articles and and it's amazing that the problems that we had back in the 50s 60s are the same ones that we're facing today I mean it seriously is amazing right you got you got affordable housing you got cost of living you got uh economy diversification you got environmental issues you got native Hawaiian rights all these issues and more you know tourism all that all these issues and more we've been battling and trying to figure out how to solve them for so long and yet we we can't figure it out and and granted we have so many more you know use of technology and better thinking and perspective and history on our side but yet for some reason we can't figure out how to solve these problems and maybe that's just part of the human condition and and just some of the things that that people struggle with that you can't fix those things but it's interesting how the problems over time don't change and I hope that by at least remembering now what's going on now you know when I become kapuna hopefully you know long time from now like in my 60s or 70s I'll be able to remember all the stuff that we were talking about right now when it comes to rail when it comes to cost of living affordable housing I going to be able to remember and say oh yeah I remember we we tried that one time didn't really turn out so well but maybe this time we can try it differently but I think just having that history and perspective is is very important and so I think about that audience the local local people here now who are living here now and and and that's how much I've I've changed because of this YouTube channel and the type of things that I talk about and the third way that I've changed is you know through the comments from people who have moved away locals who have moved away it makes me very thankful that I'm still here but also at the same time very mindful that the possibility of us leaving Hawaii is very real I'm unfortunate that I have family here still and and I think we primarily we're going to be okay but I know there's a lot of people that are not going to be okay and every year we lose more and more local people when I read those comments and I and I hear people's stories about how they had to leave it's a good reminder I've had family members who have had to leave too you know and it's not easy I left to go to the mainland but I left because I wanted to go I left because I wanted to go uh College I left because I wanted to go work I stayed up there Colorado Oregon Colorado again California right I I went up there because I wanted to be there and then I came back home and and and now I have my life here but for some people for some families it's not a choice it's not a a positive Choice it's more like that's all they got left and and I'm mindful of that audience and I'm mindful that that audience is growing right I mean we seen 15,000 people left the state last year probably going to be about the same this year and and I don't know if that number is ever going to go significantly down but I I'm mindful of of those locals those aunties uncles cousins of other people not just my own but but of other people that are also leaving people who have already left who have established you know Wonderful lives away from Hawaii but maybe they just want to be reminded of of Hawaii you know and and and what what they see online predominantly is is not necessarily a reflection on Hawaii if you know you you see uh you know travel stuff or you see um influencer lifestyle stuff you know if you're from here you know that that that's not how it really is right and and and so I hope that what I I I I talk about I hope that where I go and and try to film uh is is more relatable you know I I'm sure there's people out there that they just want to see the bus you know that that would remind them of home and and and they' have all wonderful memories and and emotions just tiing with seeing the bus I mean I can see the bus right here you know two of them actually and um so so I'm very mindful of that audience but that's changed me like thinking about that making videos and hearing those those people's stories you know it's a reminder that I'm thankful to be here you know the the sacrifices of of my family as well as sacrifices of of of this family of of myself and and my wife and and where we're at you know it I try to take it for granted you know growing up in Hawaii you just assume right you just walk outside it's like oh wow so beautiful right uh every morning I could walk outside when I was growing up and Kola Mountain's right there and you just take it for granted you know it's natural but I'm trying not to take it for granted because I know that for a lot of people this is not going to be their home for a long time you know it's counting down and and um for us it's not counting down uh but there's always that possibility you know if things get too tough or gets you know too expensive then sure you know something that we can consider made a video about that where I would move if I could move anywhere um but again I'm very mindful of of that and at the same time very very thankful you know to to still be here in Hawaii so uh okay uh keeping in mind of the time just to kind of close I recognize that I've changed a lot because of making videos in Hawaii and I'm very thankful for the audiences plural that have found me it's kind of a kind of a weird split um but I'm very proud of that and I'm glad that people have have found me have found the content interesting and helpful and hopefully encouraging at times when things are hard in Hawaii when they may be separated from Hawaii and they just want to hear somebody that sounds like they're from Hawaii or they want to see someone who who looks like they're from Hawaii cuz I know not not everywhere has people from Hawaii sure if you go to uh Vegas Henderson sure you know you walk around yeah you probably see uncles and aunties everywhere but you know if you're in the middle of of of nowhere uh you know if you're in an isolated small town or or you move further to the east it's kind of hard to to you know see someone you know to hear pigeon to you know to to be reminded of home by by things that you see so you I'm really thankful for for those audiences who have found me whenever I do meet people sometimes we know we're talking story and and they they will often ask or they'll sometimes ask uh you know how do you come up with all these ideas do you you know do you run out of ideas or you know all that and you know I I usually say that I have an endless number of ideas for this channel you know it's not limited by by uh you know uh I guess there aren't too many limits for me because when I think about Hawaii I'm very passionate and excited about I love this place you know this is where I'm from this is where will always be my home if if I live here if I go away when I went to Colorado I'm always from Hawaii I'm so proud of that fact and there's so many people out there who are also proud of that fact it's just a matter of time you know I wish I had more time to to make more of these videos but you know I got family and and you know job and all that but in terms of the ideas what I want to talk about it's like endless I got a list of of Hawaii related topics that I think those three audiences in particular will love and I'm excited I'm I me probably I think I made about I don't know how many videos I made one a weekish so it's about 50 videos that's about the max I can probably make in a year but I'm trying to make more but you know kind of hard but um yeah I'm excited for what's ahead head you know for 2024 it's hard for me to predict where the YouTube channel will go what kind of content I will make I've had ideas and sometimes doesn't work out and you know that's okay but the things that I I want to talk about when it's come you know when it comes to Hawaii I'm excited about and I hope that people can can can feel that I hope that they can see they hope I hope that they can see that I'm thinking about it I'm trying to think about it and I'm not always right in fact I like it when I'm not always right and people may disagree and when they present their reasoning as to why they don't agree it it helps me because it broadens my perspective I may not agree with them all the time you know I'm just saying but you know as best as we can where I make a video and people comment back and it kind of gets messy being back and forth through text but it it does help me a lot because I as diverse as my audience is I know there's a lot of wisdom and experience there and I would never want to close off any any other opinions or experiences that people have really felt or gone through don't always agree just like people don't always agree with me but I think we can respectfully hear each other and at the very least we both love Hawaii we both care about haai enough you know to to think about it and also to to talk about it and and to share and so I'm looking forward to what's ahead for this YouTube channel and uh you know just want to say thank you you so much 2024 is here I'm looking forward to all of the free fireworks by the way thank you guys out there um I don't know if I should be thanking you but it's going to be fun right we we going to be watching no worries you know we appreciate it but you know still got to do something about that law um anyway uh have a Happy New Year hope you and your family are safe uh and thank you so much again for checking us out uh checking my videos you know supporting us and and um you know always saying hi and U yeah so uh okay thanks for watching and Aloha hello hello hello hello hello hello from Hawaii

Channel: Hello From Hawaii

Views: 6,025

Keywords: living in hawaii, Life in hawaii, what is it like in Hawaii, Moving to hawaii, hello from hawaii, hawaii, oahu, honolulu, hawaii life, life on hawaii, hawaiian life

Id: YRQCwBfY5JI

Length: 19min 19sec (1159 seconds)

Published: Sun Dec 31 2023