change has always been a part of life that i’ve had difficulty with. some people love change, they are always looking for that next exciting adventure, the next job, the next town in which to live, the next exotic location to visit. others don’t necessarily look for it, but experience it with apprehension; those folks just smile and move through it. i, on the other hand, struggle with it. i don’t like it. i never have.

i struggle with change and passively try to avoid it, but change, like death and taxes, is unavoidable. as i’ve gotten older and learned to deal with my various neuroses, i’ve come to accept them, including my difficulty in dealing with change. when i first moved to hawaii, i struggled and multiple times early on wanted to return to the mainland. and now that i’ve been here for so many years, the thought of potentially moving to somewhere back in the united states fills me with anxiety. (i’m not actually planning to move back, but have looked at some potential job options that would require me to do just that.)

so, it is through this lens of change that i contemplate the immediate future; my time as the policy administrative assistant for governor neil abercromie is about to come to an end. while i’ve learned, somewhat, that sometimes when things end something better follows, it is my nature to focus on the past instead; this has been the best job i’ve ever had. i think i learned a lot. the people i worked with were great and i definitely felt like i was contributing to something greater than myself, which is a pretty good feeling. on december 1st, it will end and something else will replace it. it’s absolutely possible what’s next will be even better, but optimism is an outlook that i struggle to maintain for long stretches of time.

with this in mind, i wanted to take a moment to thank wendy, kendra, debbie, tammi, yvonne, and mikey, the pogs for a happy, fun, and educational couple of years. regardless of what comes next, or what’s in store for me down the road, i have no doubt that i will always remember my time in this position and remember it with fondness. whatever the job was, it was all of you who made the experience special and memorable.

i just wanted to thank you all for that. good luck to everyone, where you might go, and be sure to keep in touch.