I find it interesting how meeting a stranger, or maybe a handful of them, can drastically impact and bring about change to an individual’s life. One day in January, my friend and coworker, Marty, and I had the pleasure of meeting and guiding our guest, Sheldon, to the Mokulua Islands. As a fellow South Carolinian, Gamecock-fan, and lover of Chick-Fil-A, Sheldon was a blast to have join us on the water. As we spent our day paddling over huge waves and exploring Oahu’s offshore island, Sheldon shared his remarkable story with us throughout the day. (If you have yet to read it, you can find it here!

I contacted Sheldon just a few days after I had the pleasure of meeting him, asking him if I could share his story here with you. He happily agreed, and I wrote my blog post, “Each Day to the Fullest”, with the hope of doing his story justice! After a few email exchanges – letting Sheldon know that my newest blog was posted, and inquiring as to if my telling of his story was up to par, I received another, more shocking email from him. As I had wished him luck in surviving the cold and snowy weather that South Carolina had just received, Sheldon gave me the news that he was quite well and warm in sunny Oceanside, California. He wrote, “After crossing paths with the adventurous souls of the Hayley’s, Marty’s, and Sabrina’s of the world during my vacation in Hawaii, I knew in my heart it was time to take the plunge”. After a solo cross-country road trip, Sheldon’s car was currently somewhere in the Pacific, on a barge and en route to Hawaii! Oahu was gaining another resident!!

Surely enough, Marty and I got a surprise visit from our new friend at work just the day after he arrived. I congratulated Sheldon for following his gut and for having the cojones to pull off the move!

With Oahu being an island, and a relatively small one at that, Clay and I bumped into Sheldon just a couple of weeks ago Maunalua Bay. Needless to say, Sheldon is well and settling into his new home. As a fellow Kailua resident, I know it won’t be long before we see him again!