JUAN OZUNA

Yesterday, after having found an amazing little hidden beach and settling in for the afternoon, a curious thing happened.

After sitting in the sand and making sure my girls were playing in a safe section of water, and had adequate sunscreen, and we had enough water to stay hydrated, and we had taken photos to commemorate the event, and our stuff was secure so no one would steal it, I finally took a breath and went into the water and began playing with Xochitl, who had already made a couple of young friends (as she is wont to do).

Hanging out by the shore with them, I was immediately caught up in their game of waiting for one of the larger waves to come in and crash onto the beach, which we would ride in on our stomachs. Some might call this “bodyboarding,” but really it just felt like we were throwing ourselves into the water, which, by all accounts, we were.

And while I first felt a little embarrassed to be doing something so seemingly silly – after all, there were adults here doing adult things like scuba diving, and snorkeling, and jumping off of rocks into the water – I simply let go, and laughed out loud, and caught the next wave with my stomach. Xochitl was laughing with me, and we yelled with glee as each new wave came in and we floated like turtles to the sand. I think we even got some funny looks from the people around. But I truly felt like I had arrived.

You see, I think it’s easy to get lost in the gloss of a place like Honolulu or Waikiki. There are a lot of great shops, beautiful people, pristine settings. It’s a side of Hawaii that many people expect and what many adults come for, and in many ways it’s very nice. Often, though, I feel like it’s hard to just be myself in settings like that.

For me, my happiness was found at the end of a great wave, laughing with my family and acting like big kid. This was my fun; this was my Hawaii.

I don’t know whether it was the time difference (Hawaii is five hours behind Texas time) or I was just too excited to be in Hawaii again, but I woke up early this morning and decided to go for a run.

Much to my delight, by the time I headed out from the hotel at 5:30 AM, there was already tons of others out and about pounding the pavement and waving hello. Man, I can get used to running here every morning!

Aside from the abundance of friendliness, the throngs of people running with you, or just the beautiful views along the way, there’s just an overwhelming feeling of peacefulness that propels you. The airs ripe with motivation and encouragement, and it’s all I can do to keep from running all around Oahu.

And so it begins: our great Hawaiian vacation started with an early morning drive to San Antonio, where we picked up Xochitl and headed to the airport.

As we now wait at our gate to board, visions of beautiful beaches, awe-inspiring sunsets, and amazing vistas fill my head. I’m anxious to be back in the place where I’ve often found so much happiness.

When you sleep outside, you often wake up much earlier than you expect to. The air is cool and slightly wet, the birds are chirping excitedly, and the sky is slowly turning over, shedding its nighttime darkness for warmer colors. It is a great experience, and we had it this morning as our group woke up for the second day of our trip at Lake Corpus Christi.

Our class of Llano Grande students has thoroughly enjoyed our time here, reflecting on the spirit of friendship and community we are building through laughter and play. Already there has been hiking, fishing and swimming, and we are hungry for more, eager to experience the natural high of spending time outside.

My own joy has come from having my family here with me. Relishing the sun and trees and water with my daughters has been a treat like no other. We play, we laugh, and we bask in the sun with smiles on our faces, and I couldn’t ask for a better weekend.

Even if it does mean waking up early.

Perhaps it is because I grew up in a rural community, but more than likely it is because of the fond childhood memories I have spending time with my family: I love camping.

When I was young, we visited places like Bentsen State Park and Garner State Park and it was amazing. Running around outside, catching bugs, swimming – my parents brought me up as a true Texan who loves the outdoors and appreciates the majesty of her natural spaces.

For the past few years, I have shared that love with the students of the Llano Grande class. As part of our relationship building process, we have spent weekends at Garner, Choke Canyon, and Lake Corpus Christi. We are at the latter tonight, with a new group of kids, and the energy is awesome. It’s so neat to see a bunch of young people enjoying themselves by camping.

This weekend will be extra special, though, because I get to impart my love of camping with my children. My daughters Xochitl – who is an expert camper – and Frida – who will be experiencing her first camping trip – will be with me this weekend.

I hope this weekend will impart wonderful memories to them, so that they, too, will love the great outdoors.

Given that we have a long weekend ahead of us, my family and I decided we would head up to Austin to spend some time with my sister Gina, and go on a bit of an “food tour” of Austin, remembering all of our favorite eateries.

Not only was the prospect of enjoying restaurants like the Cheesecake Factory and Brick Oven Pizza exciting to us, but we were also thrilled because this was the first time our newborn daughter Frida Sol Ozuna would be leaving the Valley – it was her first little vacation. At 7-weeks-old, she was already following in the footsteps of her parents and becoming a little traveler herself.

For myself, this actually a learning experience on many different levels. As a new dad, I have to admit that I am constantly nervous about my young daughter’s interactions with the world; some would call me paranoid.  But I know that I also have to give her room to grow, and that it’s important for her to be protected, but also to be out in the world, exploring. She is big, healthy, and strong, so I felt confident she would handle the road trip and capital city just fine.

It was also a lesson in preparation: as a newborn, this little girl needs more than most of us, and required quite a bit of packing. Pampers, wipes, a place to sleep, blankets, a stroller, carseat and plenty of other baby items have been packed up.

And like that, we are gone, another great adventure underway.

I had been holding onto this picture from Park City, UT because I had entered it into a contest, but now that I know I didn’t win, I can share it with you.

Every now and then, fate blesses us with one of those rare moments when the world presents to you a bit of magic and makes you feel like you are a special audience of one. I had one of those moments during my time in Utah, when it seemed I was being shown something unique and beautiful, a scene just for me.

After having breakfast one morning, I was walking back to my hotel when I looked and saw something rising out of the ground up into the sky, slowly floating up. It looked tiny at first, but as it made it’s way up into the heavens, I realized what it was: a hot-air balloon. Before long, another and then another appeared, all gracefully climbing up into the ethos.

And so I did the only thing I could after watching in awe for a moment: I grabbed my camera and took a few shots. Luckily for me, they were able to capture some of the magic I experienced in Utah.

I have to admit: I was starstruck as I walked around the streets of Park City, Utah, even though, for the most part, the streets were pretty empty save for a few late diners and what appeared to be a sweet sixteen party. But how could I not be starstruck? This was home to the Sundance Film Festival. And I had just had dinner in Robert Redford’s restaurant.

And even though it felt just a little bit like being in Disneyland after hours when all the rides were closed, I still couldn’t help to imagine the streets that I was now walking on being filled with all manner of filmmakers, actors, and Hollywood elite. It was a dream of mine to be able to be here one day as a director premiering a new indie film. This was only fueling my fire.

But because no one was around, it did give me a chance to walk a little more freely and check out some of the main street area of this quiet little mountain town. It’s like many others I have visited – there is a western ruggedness to the aesthetic, and a lot of the local shops were devoted to art that reflected the spirit of the snow and hills that surrounded this place. There was also a lot of Native American influence, with many shops offering native art and jewelry.

Park City was also home to some of the events from the 2002 Winter Olympics, and we got to visit the Olympic Torch.

But the Hollywood influence was also hard to ignore, with many theaters and high-scale shops present as well. It almost seemed like a town built specifically as an escape for the rich – a chance for the upper class to head into nature.

Either way, I really enjoyed myself there, and I hope to visit again someday. Only next time, I want to be one of those people who are attending Sundance.

It was until after we sat down that I began looking around at the large, poster-sized photos hanging on the wall, all depicting famous actors and Hollywood types engaged in interviews and paparazzo. Interesting, I thought out loud.

Then someone explained. “We’re in Robert Redford’s restaurant.” Woah, I thought out loud again.

Last night, as part of our Kellogg Leadership for Community Change (KLCC) gathering, we had dinner in downtown Park City, UT, a beautiful little mountain town just outside of Salt Lake City that also just happens to be home of the Sundance Film Festival and Mr. Redford himself. Along with founding the cinematic festival, Redford also owns the restaurant Zoom, which is where we were seated. My eyes opened up at the magical possibilities this now presented.

“Is Robert Redford here?” I quickly asked the waiter.

“He’s in the back,” he told me calmly.

“Can we meet him?” I asked in a voice that probably had way too much desperation in it. To this question, the waiter only smiled.

Unfortunately, we never did meet Robert Redford, but I couldn’t help but feel like there was a sort-of star-studded magic in the air as we dined on fancy steaks and drank expensive beer. I even looked around several back-door corners to see if I’d be able to catch some glimpse of the Sundance Kid himself. No go.

Still, it was pretty awesome to be there.