The Sport of Kings

      More Letters From Paradise
         The Sport of Kings
Polo the sport of kings originated in Persia some 2000 years ago, and later spread to India and the rest of the world. The sport evolved as a training aid for mounted calvary. Polo revealed  the character of the players and their courage.  Players mounted on horses with mallets fought for a small ball which would lead to a victory goal at the end of the playing field.

Polo today remains pretty much as it always had. Trained horses,riders with a mallet chasing a small boll towards a goal. But remember I called this the "Sport of Kings?"
This year the Oak Brook Polo Club in Oak Brook, Illinois, traveled to Deli India to play polo, and visited many sites including the Taj Mahal. Also, The Polo Gold Cup series was played this year in Dubai at the Habtoor Polo Resort and Club in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

But polo is also played and enjoyed by people of more modest means. Polo is played here in Hawaii at two polo clubs. And I should note that the famous WWII General George Patton played polo here.

The Honolulu Polo Club is located at Waimanalo, one of the most beautiful spots on the island of Oahu. But this was not always so. Club President Allen Hoe told me that years ago if a car was stolen, it could often be found stripped and burned on what later became the polo playing field. The land is leased from the State of Hawaii as it is located on a flood plane and not considered valuable.

The Honolulu Polo Club boasts a covered seating area for members, and seating below for visitors. A converted shipping container houses tools,generator,and a restroom for women.There is also a tall booth reached by stairs for the public sound system. Across the field are the stables for the many horses.

Club President Allen Hoe was recently honored in the June 2017 edition of Players Edition of "Polo" magazine. The U.S. Polo Association presented the George S. Patton Jr. award to Allen Hoe in appreciation of his efforts to create opportunities for military members and their families to become involved in the sport of polo.

A combat medic in  the Vietnam War he is the recipient of the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, and Combat Medics Badge. He is a lawyer, judge, and one of the founders of the Honolulu Polo Club. He has been training solders of the 25th Infantry Division in the rudiments of horsemanship and polo at famous Schofield Barracks. For all his work with veterans, the Department of the Army made him a Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army, which carries a three-star rank. And so the Honolulu Polo Club is being well led.    The gates at the Honolulu Polo Club open at 1/pm and the match begins at 3pm. Entry fee is only $5.00 but the fee is waved for military families and members.

When the British ruled India, the game of polo was divided into a  period of play called a  "chukka." A normal game consists of four chukkers, although sometimes five or even six are not unusual. Each chukker lasts just seven minutes, and a horn blasts warning that only 30 seconds of play remain until the sound of a bell ends play. This is so civilized. While the riders leave the field and mount fresh horses there is time to eat, drink and gossip.                                                                

A beautiful Sunday afternoon well spent with polo and friends, is something not to be missed when you are visiting Hawaii during the polo season.
                                                  Aloha
     Grant                                      

Witch Doctor

      More Letters From Paradise
           Witch Doctor
I met Neal last night. He was stopping here on his way to Seattle, where he hopes to sell his 48 foot sailboat. He said that he was from South Africa, but that he lived in Sidney Australia. He had just returned from spending several days in Tahiti and Bora Bora. While talking with him he seemed pleased that I knew so very much about South Africa. We talked about the Transvaal and the Boer War. I asked him to tell me a story about South Africa.

He said that the factory where he worked  employed members of the Zulu tribe. One day a very delicate precision instrument was stolen. It was used to measure the thickness of paint. In order to have it returned he went to see the local witch doctor.

He stated the problem of the theft and ask what he could to about it. The witch doctor said that for 50 Rand (currency) he could have it returned in one month. And the instrument would be returned for 100 Rand in one week. But if he wanted it returned in one day it would cost 150 Rand. Neal needed the instrument and agreed to pay the 150 Rand.

The following day the Witch doctor arrived dressed in all of his fancy dress. He asked that all the workers be brought together. He then began to dance around,looking at each man and throwing some powder about. Then he departed and the men went back to work. The following morning behind a box on Neal's desk was the missing instrument.

     Aloha
     Grant

Down and Dirty

      More Letters From Paradise
          Down and Dirty
When I was a boy we played a game called "Marbles." We didn't invent the game, and I am sure that some sort of a game played by boys in the dirt with marbles, has been played for centuries,if not thousands of years.

All the equipment we needed was a stick, a smooth patch of dirt, and a bag of marbles. Using the stick a circle was drawn in the dirt, and each boy would put an equal number of marbles deep inside the circle. The object of the game was to hit the marbles out of the the circle and  became the property of the shooter. Each boy had a large size marble or boulder which was his shooter. The boy whose turn it was, kneeled in the dirt and took aim. The shooter was driven by the thumb of your hand and released by the index finger. Just like releasing a spring. It was a game that even poor boys could play.

I doubt that this game is played by boys today. Technology sometimes kills even simple fun. I record this game so that it will be remembered, and not lost to the dust of history.

     Aloha
     Grant