Suspending Belief

Kaua’i announces itself in slow motion.
Weather is part of it,
Roads require it
And Kamaanina’s* live it.

Haoles*can’t abide the pace.
Driving behind cars moving under the speed limit
Is a wake up call,
If you’re listening.

Homogenized western fundamentals
Find resistance from a local attitude
That moves slowly toward
Recognition that 60 seconds make a minute

Now before the second and minute hands
Crush the inchoate sense of time,
You can today, not tomorrow,
Slow the gears, and cautiously, exhale.

Chances are it won’t work,
Much effort spent defending “I”
Does not allow slack-key-guitars,
And roaring down the highway at 25 miles an hour.

*Haoles = mainland Caucasians
Kamaanina’s = locals