One Month In: What the Island Actually Changed
We hit one month living on Kauai this week, and we sat down to catalogue everything that's actually shifted since the move. Some of it we expected. Most of it we didn't.
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Less Phone, More Presence
Neither of us decided to spend less time on our phones. It just happened. What used to be constant scrolling, checking, posting, has quietly dropped off without either of us making it a rule. It ties into something bigger we keep coming back to: being present instead of living through a screen in your hand.
From Water Scarcity to Abundance
We used to live somewhere with a shallow well, which meant choosing between watering the grass, taking a shower, or doing laundry. Never all three. Here, the water just comes, from the tap and from the sky. It rains most nights and clears by morning, which is the exact rhythm we used to wish for and didn't realize we were describing our future home.
Island Time Isn't What We Thought It Was
We expected island time to mean everything moves slower, and that we'd have to force ourselves to adjust. That's not really what it is. It's less about pace and more about presence. Most people live thirty minutes ahead of the actual moment, or stuck in the past. The island doesn't let you do that. It forces you into right now, whether you're ready or not.
Clint's Fear of Water, and the Day He Finally Surfed
For years, Clint's fear of water was close to paralyzing. He wouldn't get into anything he couldn't see the bottom of, wouldn't go over his head, and even paddleboarding on a calm lake came with an irrational thought he couldn't shake, that something was going to grab him from below.
This week he rented a board for the first time and paddled out into actual ocean waves. He fell more than once. And somewhere in the middle of it, he realized the fear wasn't there. Not gone forever, but gone for that hour. He was nervous walking up and nervous paddling out, and none of that mattered once he'd already decided he was doing it.
Johnna's New Rhythm, and a Dragon Fruit at the DMV
Johnna's picked up a new work schedule at Kauai Surf School, and her days now run on a rhythm that doesn't always match the calendar. She's also found a level of connection with total strangers she'd never experienced before, at the gas station, the grocery store, even the DMV, where a routine inspection turned into a conversation about dragon fruit and ended with her walking out holding one.
Why the Island Keeps Choosing Us
There's a line we keep coming back to: you don't choose the island, the island chooses you. A month in, that's felt true in small ways over and over, paperwork that should have taken hours taking twenty minutes, the right person showing up at the right moment. We're not saying Kauai is for everyone. It exposes everything you're carrying, insecurities included. But for us, it keeps confirming we're supposed to be here.
A lot has changed this month, and none of it happened on purpose. We shared a few more stories in this week's newsletter that didn't make it into this post. Want the next one in your inbox? Sign up here.