I just finished teaching a Sky and Space course with the University of Hawai'i CRDG Summer Program, and our last unit on space emphasized how vast our immense universe is, and that our lifetime is really only a moment in its great history. At the same time, I tried to impress upon the children the importance of doing their part to help our world, and the need to reach out to others to make a difference. Though change begins within each one of us, I believe that great change comes when we work together.

I began blogging for the community two years ago hoping to become more connected to the people and places in my neighborhood. By following what was going on in the community more closely, I had the opportunity to notice and experience some of the great changes that have been made possible by my neighbors. I've been inspired by everything from the beauty of a Manoa community garden (once an unsightly dirt area that was transformed and lovingly maintained into a peaceful spot for neighbors to gather), to Noelani's Beautification Day (where volunteers spend a day each year transforming our campus), to the persistence and commitment of many people to growing the Makiki Community Library into the special place of learning and nurturing that it is today.

Earlier this summer, when I blogged about the idea of starting a free writing club for kids in the community, a Makiki Community Library board member contacted me and warmly offered to open up the library on Thursday afternoons for the club to meet. Through that gesture, my group of kids not only found a place to write and share, but I felt the welcoming arms of a community that though I had lived in for over a year, I hadn't yet treated as my home. Home isn't just a place where you live, work and play — it's a place where you find a way to contribute, a place where you look for and make changes that need to be made, a place where you reach out and embrace those around you.

Over the past month, as I spent time with the children and adults in the community, I finally felt like the reason I began blogging was realized — though writing about the people and places in the community kept me (and hopefully others) informed, it is now seeing and treating my community as my home that has allowed me to take part in those great changes I only used to wish for.

The second annual Rediscover Makiki Sunset in the Park will take place Friday, from 4 to 10 p.m., and Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., and the event promises not only to showcase how special our home is, but to make you a part of it. There will be a variety of activities including sunset movies ("Madagascar: Return to Africa" and "Iron Man" at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, respectively), a book sale, keiki games and rides, and presentations in the library including story telling, a magician and a Mad Science interactive performance (this recently added performance will be on Saturday at 12:30 p.m.).

I'll be volunteering with some friends at the keiki tent and I hope to see you there. What a wonderful opportunity this will be for us to come together and celebrate our home, its families and the continued great changes in our community that help make our part of this "immense universe" bigger and brighter.