The cyclical rhythm of life’s metronome, ticking away in the background, is revealed in many different beats. Whether languid or frenetic, the contrast of our lives’ paces coincides at path-crossing moments. It is at those intersections when we see our natural tempos juxtaposed. It can’t only be in Hawai‘i where the frazzled parent rushing to take a child to their next activity on the packed agenda has to pause for the peripatetic tourist who is lost — in thought or navigation — as they all ponder the possibility of making a right turn on a red light. Fortunately, our island living sense-of-aloha prevails, pervades and (like this morning’s coffee) percolates throughout our day, reminding us to hit reset and hopefully find some balance between the two. 

On our cover for this season’s issue is consummate actor Alan Cumming, whose filmography credits read like an ideal ratio of film-to-television, to on-stage drama, allowing him to reap a cornucopia of deserved awards. With decades of portraying iconic characters and memorable roles — he may be most familiar to local readers for his appearances in The Good Wife, Sex and the City, Romy & Michele’s High School Reunion and GoldenEye — he shares some real gems to be enjoyed with Yu Shing Ting for cover feature, “A Very Charmed Kind of Life.” Flip to page 86 for more. 

Further along, I can hint at some personal favorites from our pages that have found their way on to a bucket list or two. Don’t miss writer Jefferson Finney’s take on an ideal place to turn down the dial: Dawn Ranch, nestled between towering redwoods and the Russian River idly flowing through Sonoma’s hill country. Also, on the more intentional side of things is writer Karyl Garland’s piece on Pulitzer Prize for Music-Finalist Leilehua Lanzilotti, whose compositions are world renown and have their roots in her early music studies right here in Honolulu.

So please join us in discovering all the other pieces to enjoy in this latest issue, because bringing them to you, well, that’s truly our beat!

Much aloha,
Margie Jacinto, Publisher