Reading these newspaper columns from early 90s Maui gives me a taste of something rare. For me, it tastes like my youth--the green and warm air of Upcountry, in that time of your life when you don't even really notice what makes it precious because you don't know anything else. They include a bit of local history, a bit of country wisdom, a bit of where your thoughts take you when you slow down and bother to soak it all up. Open your eyes to the splendid and astonishing world around you. Ask your dog and your neighbor's old car for insight. Did you know that you are blessed to be coming into your own self in the slowcooker slurry of community? Despite what you think, teenage me, it just might not last forever.

Thank you, Paul Wood, for showing me how to love the craft of writing, how to let the words dissolve on my tongue, to see the world as new. And how to Be Warm, Get Wide, and Have a Real Day. ( )