Thursday, February 04, 2021

Mom and Me

Stuart K. Hayashi



My mother died on January 12, 2021. On February 4, 2021, she would have turned 74. Here are some photos. 



Above is one from our old photo albums. Our preschool was going on a field trip to the Waikiki Aquarium. Very spontaneously, I said I wished my mom could come and chaperone us. To my happy surprise, she spontaneously decided to do so! Later in the album, I saw she took a photo of a Painted Frogfish. I was surprised. Until then, I thought I first saw the aquarium’s Painted Frogfish — which fascinated me — in the late 1990s.

And here is one of our later Christmases together:


My family is a ship. My mother was the captain who ensured everything was running in its proper order. I will be very privileged if I can go through life with the sort of confidence, strength, and wisdom that she did.