Aloha!

It’s pretty cool that I start this week’s blog with that greeting, as we are in Hawai’i for two basketball games. It is my first time in Hawaii and my second time out of the lower 48 states.

Both games were played at Hawai’i Pacific’s Shark Tank.  It is a unique place to play with no air conditioning, just like Chaminade University. We had a couple of shootarounds at Chaminade, and it was very cool to see the two gyms and how different everything is here in Hawai’i compared to the RMAC and what I have been used to.

Basketball has given me many opportunities to see new places around the country and to come to Hawai’i, and play has now been added to that list.  I am always fascinated by the different ways people can choose to live their lives and the community that they are in.

After the games, we could spend some time at the beach and see Pearl Harbor and the memorial at the USS Arizona. This will be a memory that I will have forever, and I was amazed by Pearl Harbor in person.

We are so blessed to be able to play college basketball and have the rights that many have died for in this country. As I walked around Pearl Harbor, it gave me a tremendous sense of patriotism to think that men my age and younger were serving at Pearl Harbor when the attack happened, and because of their service, they lost their lives.

Basketball isn’t quite the same, but it is incredible to think about the connection between teammates and people you are fighting with together.

While at the memorial, I felt a lot about all the guys I have played with and connected it to the armed forces and band of brotherhood for those who have served our country. To fight with other people who want to protect our rights and way of life has to be life-changing. Most of the men who survived the attack have wished to be buried with their brothers in arms in the USS Arizona or ships that they served on.

I hope that every American has the chance someday to be able to see Pearl Harbor and learn about the history of what happened. Basketball allowed me to visit Pearl Harbor, and I am very thankful for the relationships, connections, places I have traveled, schooling, and everything the game has provided for me.