Beginning on November 1, which is the date of my mother’s first letter from her Hawaii trip 84 years ago, I am serializing day by day, the book, Cecilia King’s Extraordinary Senior Trip, which you can obtain from Amazon in either Kindle or paperback.

I hope you enjoy the upcoming nine-months in Hawaii 1940-41. You can order the entire book from Amazon in either paperback or Kindle format, click here.

December 2, 1940
Monday night
Dear Daddy and Mother –
All ready to start a new volume – and it looks as if I might have a lot of good times to report in it. We’ve spent the entire day planning, calling, and counter-planning with some results. We’re to entertain the Thomas wedding party December 14 – and I am to go to a huge Air Corps party (dinner-dance) at Wheeler Field December 21st. A Helen Heffochard (whose mother I met at the wedding) arranged for the initiation – has gotten me a date for it – and I’m to spend the night at her house as Wheeler is almost a part of Schofield & so far out of town. Friday – Mary Jane Thomas invited me to a luncheon for a friend of hers who is sailing the next day.
I’m taking my white taffeta to Leatrice tomorrow – to have it fitted & new ribbons put on & a white half slip made to wear with it – am hoping Santa will bring me a dress by the 21st.
Oh, by the way, & before I forget it – U. Ed wants you to tell him what to send Carol – about $25.00 – worth he wants to get & want to be sure & get something she can keep always – so don’t forget suggestions. I didn’t get a clipper letter from you today but keep hoping to get that thing soon as half my dates are ----- I have the car during the day.
We star-gazed a little tonight & picked out two beautiful new planets -- & with the opera gasses saw several nebulas.
We are broken (interruption: A. Susan just called me out in the back yard in my pajamas to see Sirius – just coming up. It’s one of the largest stars and the Egyptians built their temples facing it because they thought it brought the floods – magnificent, white) well, anyway – a I was about to say – we’re broken hearted because our Negro cook Nora (who makes such delicious hot breads) is leaving. Her husband is in the Marines & she is following him back to the coast – but has found a substitute among her Marine-wife friends for us.
Tomorrow I’m starting to take “sun vitamin” tablets – guess they’re about what Dr. Churchill gave me. Sometime next week I will have a blood test made at Tripler and my nose examined if it is no better.
Right outside our porch a vanilla vine climbs over the shrubs – very green waxy leaves – the vanilla flavoring is taken from the white blossoms and the seeds, I believe, are canned as nutmeg. There is one short avenue in town darkly shaded by banyan trees (brought from India) and completely covered with these waxlike vines.
There is such a marvelous breeze coming in the windows & I’m so sleepy (our exertion from Monday washing) that I can’t resist much longer – so goodnight –