The Plantation
Jon Abe
Every few years, our family flies over to island of Kauai to visit all of the aunties and uncles on my dad’s side. There, the majority of our time is spent conversing with family members, fishing on the shoreline, or hiking the beautiful terrain. Yet regardless of how long or short our family trip is, my dad makes sure to set aside some time to visit the old Kauai Plantation. It is there where his grandfather and grandmother worked endless hours in the blazing sun in order to provide for their family. Just as Howard University was Ta-Nehisi Coates’ Mecca, the old Kauai Plantation was my dad’s Mecca. Although neither his grandfather (plantation worker) nor his father (military) attended college, they both emphasized the importance of education to my dad. They told him that if he ever wanted to provide a good life for his wife and his kids, then he ought to focus on his schooling. With a proper education, he would not need to work long, grueling hours at a blue-collared job and would be able to spend more time with his family. Whenever my dad got side-tracked with school, thought about cutting class, or perhaps not completing his homework, he would walk to the plantation and ask himself, is this the kind of work that I want to do for the rest of my life? Do I want to be constantly working, or do I want to see my children? It was this thought process that helped my dad power through college and receive a degree in civil engineering.
Although I don’t have the luxury of walking to the old Kauai Plantation just as my dad did when I lose track of my priorities, I envision myself visiting it in my head, though it is hundreds of miles away. Every now and again when I daydream about the plantation, I see a younger version of my father looking around at the plantation with a determined face, reminding himself about the importance of education. It is this image that motivates me and causes me to strive for greatness.
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