Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 9, Number 12, 1 December 1992 — Judge Thomas Kaulukukui, Jr. shares secrets of success [ARTICLE]

Judge Thomas Kaulukukui, Jr. shares secrets of success

by Jeff Clark "We give them the future," said Judge Thomas Kaulukukui, Jr., son of longtime and just-retired OHA Trustee Thomas Kaulukukui, Sr., in a speech on the kūpuna's role in teaching Hawaiian values to the family. Using metaphor to make his point about passing the culture to the 'opio (youth), he said that, rather than give our children fish, we need to teach them how to fish. Kaulukukui gave his speech on Saturday morning, midway through the conference. Kūpuna alaka'i Betty Kawohiokalani Jenkins introduced him as "Unele Tommy's son, not neeessarily the judge, but Unele Tommy's son." Humble like his father, Kaulukukui shared a plan for success that has helped him attain goals in life. His formula is the "three-P" combination of preparation, perseverance, and perspective. Preparation means hard work, he

said, and defined luek as a situation "when preparation meets opportunity." Perseverance means keeping after a task until it is completed. "If the prineiple matters, you should not give up," Kaulukukui said. "A grain of sand gives the oyster a bellyache, but perseverance makes it a pearl." In teaching our 'ohana perspective, we assist our loved ones in making wise decisions, Kaulukukui said. "Wisdom is eommon sense to an uneommon degree," he added. The judge compared life with mountain climbing. Reaching a goal is like climbing to the peak of a mountain, but as any mountaineer knows, when you reach the top, you see another mountain behind it waiting for you. Fortunately, there is a good view from the peak, so you have a good idea of what lays before you and what you must do. The point is, life is a journey, not a destination.