The Ohana Way 2.0: 30th Anniversary Edition

by Scot Conway

The Ohana Way 2.0 is my 30th Anniversary Edition of The Ohana Way in honor of the 1990 start. “Ohana means family. Family means no one gets left behind or forgotten.” – Lilo and StitchThanks to the movie Lilo and Stitch, popular culture has a basic definition of ohana. The movie came out in 2002, and children born many years after still know the definition of ohana from the movie. Such is the power of Disney. I sat down with five and six year-olds, and when I ask them if they know what ohana means, they do. They have the Disney definition down perfect!Ohana means family. Family includes those bonded by affection and something in common. It represents an ideal that we illustrate by using ohana as an acronym. Technically, that means we should always have periods between our letters as in O.H.A.N.A., but we often dispense with the periods and just write it OHANA or even just capitalize Ohana. This way we know we’re talking about our five-part acronym.OHANA O-OasisH-HarmonyA-AssertivenessN-NobilityA-AlohaEach one of these elements has a more complete, deeper expression than this (which we explore in future chapters). As a starting place, this is what we OASIS – Be a Refreshing Refuge. Being an Oasis and helping create an Ohana Oasis means I always make it better by being here. I help create a refuge from the usual, the annoying and the difficult. HARMONY – Embrace Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations Aimed at Greatness. Great music is made from melody and harmony. Many instruments, notes, and singers work together to make all sorts of different and amazing music. Harmony means we don’t have to be alike to be together. ASSERTIVENESS – Moving Forward on Purpose with Respect for Others. We Live Life on Purpose. We live assertively, learn assertively and love assertively. We practice assertive listening, assertive relationships, assertive parenting, and assertiveness in any and all areas of life. NOBILITY – Be our Highest and Best Selves. The metaphor of the Royal Knight dives deep into our ideals of princeliness and princessliness in their highest and best forms. We pursue knightly chivalry and samurai bushido in service to high ideals.ALOHA – Love in All Its Many Meanings and Manifestations. Love is I want the best for you, I want to be the best for you, and I want you to have transcendent joy. Aloha also includes hello and goodbye in Hawaiian.

319 pages, Paperback

Published June 22, 2020