Eric's Remembrance

Here is Eric's remembrance from the memorial service...

Aloha to Mom

I learned 3 basic truths growing up. One, my mother was a fun loving, creative spendthrift. Two, my dad was a hard working Pake. And three, apparently, according to my dad, I was just like my mom.

What did this mean, to be just like Peggy Chun? Well, to me it meant a lot of things. It meant I had faith in my own creative abilities. When she had an idea, there was never a question of “Can I do this?”, it was always: “Let’s do it! …and we’ll figure out how later.”

She always filled me with confidence, and encouraged me without solicitation. Like if I was drawing something, she would say “Oh honey, you are such a great artist!” and I believed what she said. This kind of self-confidence goes a long way.

Mom had a shameless charm about her. When there was a problem, she could charm the shirt off anyone who could help. But she always did it with love. And with a nudge and a wink, she would acknowledge that she knew it was a lot to ask, but that the reward was always great. She found many co-conspirators this way.

She was shameless in the way that she was not embarrassed by acting on her ideas. She could walk into a room dressed in a penguin costume with no remorse. In fact, pretty soon, the whole room would be in stitches, and probably putting on the other costumes she brought along.

I wasn’t embarrassed by these antics until around hitting puberty. But before that, she was a magical, kid-like figure who could do no wrong. In Elementary school, she would come to visit my classroom one day every year, with boxes of Christmas ornament supplies, and we would spend the day gluing shells and Kukui nuts together, making our own creations. I wasn’t embarrassed. I thought she was the coolest mom around. She wasn’t your normal stuffy adult, she lived the magic of childhood.
In fact, my mom was a big kid to the end. She valued the moment and gulped down the abundance of life with playfulness and disregard, but always with joy.

It is this joy, this love for life, that she will always be remembered. It is her greatest gift to us all. To love and be loved with all your heart.

My maternal grandmother, my mom’s mom, Sara Richard was her greatest inspiration. She modeled herself upon her mom’s exuberance and love for life. In her final days, my grandmother wrote these words:

“Chastity without charity is chained in hell. The same can be said of all the virtues. Patience without love is condescending. Courage becomes stoicism, and church going, hypocrisy. St. Thomas says that the virtues are the habits of love.

Mom drew great strength from the love of her mother, and I can do the same. Am I still “just like my mom?” Well, I am grown now and can see the big picture in life. I can see the dark with the light. But fundamentally, I am what I am because of her virtue. Thank you mom, for giving me this gift. I will miss you.

In closing, I’m sure Peg would ask us to see the beauty of this world all around us. And the next time you look up at the sky and see the clouds, notice that there is more than just grey and white. She would point out all the subtle and beautiful colors that are reflected: the violets and cobalts, the burnt siennas, ultramarines, and of course her favorite: Cadmium Red Light.

Peace be with you mom, Aloooooha.