skoolie life

four years ago we were craving a more simple life. we sold our hale on oahu along with most of our belongings … keeping only what could fit inside a shipping container. we moved to keaukaha on hawaii island and bought an old school bus. took out the seats. scraped off any sticky bubble gum residue we could find. gave it a good sweep and mop down. and painted the exterior a retro color mint green. we lived in it for seven months. slowly making it feel more like home by finding beautiful vintage or modern bohemian style decor, one piece at a time. with no electricity or wifi … only a generator that gave us enough power to charge cell phones + laptops and some light to get us by at night. we boiled hot water to make instant coffee and oatmeal. listening to the sounds of rain falling on a metal skoolie roof, coqui frogs, birds singing and trees blowing in the wind. we read books, played cards and board games. and learned to do the hilo shake, dusting off our towels or clothes so we wouldn’t get bit by fire ants. because whenever we did, owee that buggah would sting! we lived so close to the beach we could ride our bikes to jump in ice cold ponds and even walk to school. my keiki would love to run around bare feet until the sun goes to sleep. climbing on fallen albizia trees on our aina that reminded us of giant dinosaurs. oh the good old days. sort of feels like a lifetime ago because so much has evolved since then. but i wouldn’t have changed a thing. because it was in those simple quiet moments that akua was preparing us for the journey ahead. reflecting back now, i discovered that if i can make a skoolie shack feel like a quaint vintage aloha palace, and navigate through all those seasons … we can do anything!