Do We Have To Go To the Beach AGAIN?

The Unbearable "Struggle" of Growing Up in Hawaii

Oct 28, 2025

I’ve lived in Hawaii 3 different times in my life.

In this regard, the military was VERY good to me.

The first time was when my dad (who was also in the Air Force) was stationed there from 1977-1982. I was 8 when we got there and almost 13 when we left.

The Morris family in the backyard of the house on Apollo Ave

I was then stationed there two times myself. From 1998-2002, and from 2006-2009.

I’m sure I’ll share more stories about those active duty times in the future.

But this is a story about Growing up in Hawaii

8 year old Todd had no idea what a lucky little boy he was.

Or maybe I did?

We had previously lived in New York, Illinois, and New Jersey when my dad got orders for Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii.

Our first 2-3 weeks on the island of Oahu were spent in a hotel on Waikiki beach. But before you get too jealous, think about that picture of our family …

Now imagine my poor mom and dad having to deal with four little kids (three of them rambunctious boys) in a hotel room from 3 whole weeks.

I’m sure they got over it.

We were in Hawaii after all. 😁

Waikiki Beach with Diamond Head in the background

After we moved into our house on Hickam AFB, we settled into a routine. My dad worked on big airplanes on the flightline. My brother and I went to school. The twins and my mom were initially at home, but when they started school, she got a job at the little par-three golf course on base.

As a pre-teen boy in the late 70s, my days were filled with baseball games, catching bugs and lizards, fishing at the harbor, and occasional scrapes, bruises (or worse) when our games of “smear the queer” (holy cow, we were very un-PC in those days) got a little too out of hand.

Parent of 70s and early 80s were also much less “hovering” than they are today.

My friends and I once got on the bus and rode down to Honolulu. After a stop at Hotel street, we had weeks worth of stories to tell our friends at school about the “bums” and “hookers” we saw (very thrilling for 10 year old boys).

I would also often ride my bicycle over to Pearl Harbor to look at the ships and submarines.

Even then, I really enjoyed my freedom.

However, since I was also part of a family …

Every Sunday we “had to” go to the Beach

That was the view. Blue water, mountains, waves.

Who wouldn’t want to be there?

lol, a 10 year old boy who would have rather been playing with his friends, or even going to the pool on base.

That’s who.

Don’t get me wrong, we had a great time once we were there. We BBQ’d burgers in the afternoon, and in the meantime it was hours and hours of boogie boarding, or building sand castles, or catching crabs.

I would also sometimes bring my boom box radio and attempt to tape my favorite songs from the top-40 countdown show. (I don’t know if anybody else remembers this, but you couldn’t hear the song while the “record” button was pressed, so you had to guess when you thought it was over).

During those 5 years I lived in Hawaii as a kid, we spent A LOT of time at the beach.