Where are you from?

'Aloha.' This is my greeting to people I speak with on the phone, this is my greeting as I meet new guests arriving at the resort, this is the greeting that I use, not as a novelty, but as a true form of communication of welcome and warmth. Aloha means hello, goodbye, love, I love you...whatever warm wish and spirit you wish to convey.

And I find everyone has a different reaction and response to my greeting. Some come right back with an authentic aloha...some giggle at the foreign word, some make a funny face and are unsure how to respond, but for the most part, it is a happy word, it is a word meant to create unity and harmony, so people react accordingly.

Part of my job is to engage in conversation and create a bond with my resort guests so I can best service them. In doing so, I most often find out where my guests are from, what their family situation is, and how and where they like to vacation. But in the short time I have been in this position, I have also come across the guest that is equally interested in my situation...and I have been asked, "where are you from?"

Well, well...what they do not realize is what an entirely loaded question that is for me. I have been asked this question my entire life.

People initially ask the question because they think I am a local Hawaiian, born and raised...but when I open my mouth and speak, most realize that I am probably not a native Hawaiian...so then their thoughts wander as to where I might be from...is she Pacific Islander? Brazilian? From Fiji? South American?   Only a few people guess I am of Indian heritage, only because I feel that most people have only had experience with people from India who have an accent that gives their heritage away.

So given that people are unsure of the response I will give them, my natural and first response, especially now as I am starting to feel a longing for my home, is 'Danville.' 'the Bay Area.' 'I grew up in Walnut Creek, went to Cal Berkeley, what else do you need to know?'

I find that people are not necessarily concerned that I am from Danville, but when they find that this is my response, their questioning seems to stop. They are satisfied that I am 'from' somewhere else....they are satisfied that I am from the mainland, because this makes them feel less out of place and more at home, for if I can utter the word 'aloha' and be from Danville, well then so can they.