Escape for Aloha

"ROLLN" as he renamed himself (really, it's Antoine) and as his license plate states (no really, it spells out "ROLLN") was my Uber driver that I spent a quick Saturday afternoon with on my third day in Hawai’i.

SAY WUHHHHh?

Now I don't often make it a habit to speak with my Uber drivers in San Francisco, but given I'm the new kid here in Hawai’i, I'm enjoying learning as much as I can from the people I meet.  Conversations usually end once I arrive to my destination and I thank the Uber driver with a Mahalo and wave an Aloha.  However, the conversation did not end this time as they always do.  Antoine was taking me to Ono Seafood and throughout our trip, he had shared his story on how he got to Hawai’i.

Originally from Inglewood, California - Antoine came to Honolulu to (as he describes it) escape what he had only known growing up: violence, gangs, drugs, and extreme racism that pervades Los Angeles County (think Eric Garner, Michael Brown Jr, Tanisha Anderson, and the list as we all know goes on).  I winced when he told me he was driving for Uber because he didn't think he'd be living this long so he had never planned for retirement (he's just into his 50s now).  He grew up with the wrong crowd, witnessed countless of his friends' death at an early age, and faced judgements daily with fear that those judgements could lead to the worst case scenario.  So he shared with me that though his wife (who, from Michigan, is getting island fever) has tried planting the seed of going back to the mainland, he refuses to even talk about it... quite literally, he said he'd pitch a tent and would let her leave without him.  He expressed clear love for Hawai’i and what it has been for him in comparison to his experiences in LA; speechless because I will never really understand a day in his shoes, I joked with him that if he loved it so much, how come he hasn't tried Ono's Poké.

I may have hyped it up a bit, because he mentioned he hadn't had lunch and would have to take my word on this hype and try it himself.  So there we were, arrived to our destination but instead of saying goodbye, Antoine parked the car and we got in line together for some of Honolulu's finest (actually, I prefer Foodland's Poké but this might garner an angry mob so I'm not taking this topic any further).

I got my food first so was heading out and nearly called an Uber when Antoine, who came walking out after said I didn't have to call because he'd take me back himself.  I was really touched at this and as we spent the 10 minute drive back to the Waikiki area, I thanked him not only for the ride home, but for sharing his story, and I let him know that I was happy for him.  He sought out Aloha, found it, and is damn well holding onto it for as long as he can.