Aloha ‘Oe

In May, I discovered Elvis’ rendition of the song ‘Aloha ‘Oe’, written by Queen Liliuokalani. If you’ve never heard of it, I recommend giving it a listen — it’s beautiful. In fact, there are many beautiful renditions of the song out there.

The purported backstory of the song is that Liluokalani started composing it after watching Col. James Harbottle Boyd and one of her friends giving each other a heart-felt hug and kiss farewell before parting ways.

The chorus appears to reference the scene with the verses: “One fond embrace, / ‘Ere I depart / Until we meet again.”

Though the lyrics reveal that song is clearly a story of love and departure in a romantic context, I find myself extracting a broader theme of the importance and beauty of embracing the moments we get with the people dearest to us.

To have access to time with the people you love is one of the greatest gifts of life.

And though dozens of priorities will try to compete with this time on any given day, none are truly more worthy in the grand scheme.