Kelvin Lora-Beauty in Hawaii

My participant name is grace and she is my girlfriend. She currently goes to UCF and is pursing nursing. She recently went to Hawaii and personally took pictures that she loved and they are below.

PhotoVoice Project (Participant Section)

The pictures above are three beautiful depictions of environment and health. The first image  is a small corner of the North Shore beach in Oahu, Hawaii earlier this summer. You can see that the background is full of luscious greenery that covers the entire island. The shore is clear of any environmentally harmful trash, beach toys, towels, bottles, or anything that beachgoers may leave behind. The water is clean and clear and extremely refreshing, even just for the eyes. All this being said, the North Shore is a great example of a natural masterpiece that is respected by its local residents and even tourists.

The middle picture is a close-up picture of the infamous Lei flower that decorates all the Hawaiian Islands. The Polynesian culture uses these flowers to make fragrant and colorful Lei necklaces and as symbolically feminine hair pieces. The green pigment is a symbol of life, health, and in some cultures, luck. The flowers are carefully grown and harvested to preserve their structure and tint. This small flower represents abundant health and life in the environment.

The final picture is a picture of two of my horses frolicking through their pasture one morning this past summer. The lighter colored bay horse in the back is a retired racehorse who was previously confined to small and claustrophobic stalls and trailers besides the stressful environment of the track. This picture is an inspiring image of healing (health) because he is now allowed the space to live the liberated life that equines were evolutionarily supposed to.

All these descriptions tell the story of nature in Hawaii during a beautiful summer week. They show a healthy environment that is untouched by the harsh outside world. Grace describes perfectly how many people perceive the beauty of nature. I believe Grace sees nature at a fragile aspect of life that could be destroyed at any moment.

Similarly, a reading from class that would relate to this is deforestation in which nature is destroyed. With deforestation, Animals must migrate and find new homes and plants just die. With this the planet loses life and green.