Dreams of a Virgin

SHAUNA'S SONG

What if you knew you had a limited time to live? Would you want to leave a part of you behind? What would you do?

I had been experiencing severe migraine headaches for almost a week now. I put off going to the doctor for as long as I could. It finally got to the point where I could wait no longer.

I had the doctor do a series of tests on me, including a CAT scan and X-rays. I was told that I would have the results in a few days.

Several days later, I got the call from my doctor.

"Jeff, I have some bad news for you. The CAT scan revealed a tumor lodged near your brain. It's about the size of a marble. Unfortunately, we cannot operate on it."

"Okay, doc. So, how long do I have?"

"That depends if it's malignant or benign. Right now, my guess would be several months. We would need to do some more tests to know for sure."

A few months? I dropped to my knees and started crying. There were so many things I wanted to do in this life that now I wouldn't be able to do.

I decided to do what I could in the time left. The one place I had always wanted to visit was Hawaii. I cashed in my 401K and booked a flight to Honolulu for five days.

When I checked in on Tuesday, I met Shauna, the concierge. In a land filled with peace and beauty, she stood out from all the rest. I asked her for some suggestions on places to go to eat.

Once I unpacked, I decided to go shopping. What better place to buy Hawaiian shirts than the source itself. As a typical tacky tourist did, I picked up a few souvenirs, too.

I wanted to experience some Hawaiian cuisine. That night, I went to one of the best restaurants in all of Hawaii. Great but expensive.

I woke up early Wednesday and headed to Waikiki Beach. I wanted to learn how to surf. As expected, I couldn't get my balance for the first ten or twenty tries. On that twenty-first try, I actually rode a wave in. A small wave, but still a wave. As I was trying another wave, the headaches came back and threw off my equilibrium. With that, I called an end to my surfing career.

Still early in the afternoon, I wanted to check out Diamond Head Crater. It took me a while to climb it, but eventually, I reached the top. What a view. I didn't stay long. I climbed down to change for dinner.

As I came back to the hotel, I saw Shauna and told her how I rode my first wave. She greeted me with a blinding smile and gave me a brochure about the Polynesian Cultural Center on the North Side. She also recommended a great place to eat dinner tonight.

I changed and went to her recommendation. Dinner by myself in such a beautiful place just didn't feel right.

The next morning, I got up early to catch the trolley to the North side. As I walked out, there's Shauna, flashing me another smile. I spent the whole day there, just taking in all of the sights.

Coming back to change, there was Shauna again. I knew what I need to do now. However, when I came down to leave, she was gone. Guess her shift was over.

Thursday night, I went out to eat again. While I had been having Hawaiian food these past three days, when people thought of Hawaiian food, they thought luau.

On Friday, I decided to head out to Pearl Harbor and the monuments out there. It was also suggested to me to check out Iolani Palace.

When I left the hotel, there's Shauna again. Thinking of the past two nights eating alone, and with this being my last night on Maui, I approached Shauna.