Page 5 - MidWeek - Dec 7, 2022

I’m not sure if this is a phenomenon that only I experienced, but during COVID, it seemed like time was moving slowly or even standing still. Now that everything is getting back to normal, time seems to be rushing by. I swear it was just summer, then Halloween trick- or-treating and big Thanksgiving meals, and now it’s nearly Christmas! I’m afraid if I blink, it will be 2023.
As humans, it’s in our nature to reflect and bemoan whatever is before us. However, I am grateful that we are moving forward, and I am grateful my family successfully navigated the pandemic. COVID was dreadful. There was no escape from the brutal reality of how the pandemic adversely affected our world, nation, state, community, family and ourselves. It was the catalyst for many to rethink their life goals and purpose. But despite the overwhelming surge of negative news stories and
COVID victim counts, I did my best to make sure our family’s physical and mental health remained good.
At the height of the pandemic, I got so tired of negative news and sad feature stories that I simply turned off all electronics. We set the table without any TV noise, and before we started to eat, I made everyone share three bad things and three good things that occurred as a result of COVID.
To my surprise, we all easily identified positive sentiments, and almost all the negative comments could be turned into a positive. Limited access to restaurants and shopping turned into “what is great is that I can order what I want and have it ready curbside.” Missing hanging out with my friends turned into “but now we talk more on the phone.” Some of our other positive spins included “being furloughed from work allowed me to work
December 7, 2022 MIDWEEK 5
PAULETTE ITO
SVP Marketing
Hawaiian Financial Federal Credit Union
Truly Blessed Paulette Ito
on my home projects” and “I’ m so glad we volunteered at the food drive; when is the next one we can work?”
This was such a positive exercise for our family’s mental health. The more we discussed and shared the weight of the pandemic, the less it seemed like such a heavy burden. We were able to reframe the whole situation through the possibilities it presented, rather than over-focusing on the negative impacts. I was pleased to hear the positivity, but what really touched my heart is the realization that I am truly blessed to have a such a
supportive family that knows how to communicate.
Good communication is one important aspect of a successfully functioning family. Completing your “Get Your House In Order” Ho‘okele planning booklet will require you to have open conversations with your family about many important, and sometimes difficult, life-planning issues.
The Ho‘okele life-planning booklet should serve as a conversation starter for your entire family and is designed to be openly shared with your ‘ohana so they can be better prepared for any of life’s
unexpected curveballs. Your Ho‘okele guidebook includes everything from your insurance documentation to family history, and bank document locations, medical history, your legacy wishes and more. Hawaiian Financial Federal Credit Union created the Ho‘okele guidebook and “Get Your House In Order” initiative so you can live your best life by being well, being safe and being prepared.
The new “Get Your House In Order” Ho‘okele personal planning booklet 1.2 is now available as a complement to Ho‘okele 1.1. Remember, the Ho‘okele guidebooks are
designed to be completed in any order and can be started in any section. We will release a new Ho‘okele guidebook section every quarter. Each guidebook is available for download from the Hawaiian Financial Federal Credit Union website at HIFICU.com/GYHO.
For more information about the “Get Your House in Order” campaign, email GYHO@hificu. com and watch a new episode of Get Your House In Order at 7 p.m. every Saturday on KITV4.
Do you have a “Get Your House in Order” experience that could help others? Share your story at hificu.com/gyho.
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