CREWMEMBER HIGHLIGHT: Seren Tokumura
Crew Profile: Seren Tokumura
PVS Member Since
HOMETOWN:
PRIMARY DUTY:
Medical Officer
OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES:
WORLDWIDE VOYAGE LEGS SAILED:
Doldrums Sail May 2021: Hikianalia, Leg 1: Hikianalia’s Voyage To California
Seren Tokumura, MD from Honolulu, Oʻahu first sailed on Hōkūleʻa in 2018, Alahula kai o maleka, Leg 1 Hawaiʻi to San Francisco. To Seren, Hōkūleʻa stands for so much. She’s not only a beautiful sea-worthy vessel, she’s a symbol of Native Hawaiian mastery, competency, and pride that inspires and excites and has the power to bring people together. She is a microcosm of our world, and an assiduous teacher. She imparts humility, demands complete presence, and heals.
Seren’s goal is to take care of her crew, and to make sure that everyone comes home safely. When she’s out at sea, Seren craves hot showers. When she’s on land, Seren reminisces to her first voyage (Sept. 2018, day 21 Hawaiʻi to SF) and the things she loves about it, including…the sunrise and sunset every day, seeing the world light up and darken, and all the amazing colors in between. The sound of the ocean lapping at the bows when moving slowly, and slapping and crashing into the waʻa when sailing faster. The smell of steaming mugs of instant coffee in the mornings, and the sweet, earthy and warm tobacco burning in Gary’s pipe which reminds her of the Cuban cigar shop in Miami where she spent the afternoon sipping cortaditos with old men, sitting on barrels of dark cured leaves. The feeling of the waʻa moving beneath her feet- the swells of the ocean lifting and dropping and twisting her - her feet are accustomed now to shifting quickly, like a constant dance. Hearing the waʻa creak as the boards strain and take the slaps and cracks of the waves. Sails that bulge full when there is good wind and the ropes that become tight and hard like iron, squeezing out water droplets and snapping tight against the cleats. The crew and watching the navigators teach each other, how the seasoned watermen make everything look so easy, the joyful laughter shared and the happy bellies Gary fills.
Seren’s goal is to take care of her crew, and to make sure that everyone comes home safely. When she’s out at sea, Seren craves hot showers. When she’s on land, Seren reminisces to her first voyage (Sept. 2018, day 21 Hawaiʻi to SF) and the things she loves about it, including…the sunrise and sunset every day, seeing the world light up and darken, and all the amazing colors in between. The sound of the ocean lapping at the bows when moving slowly, and slapping and crashing into the waʻa when sailing faster. The smell of steaming mugs of instant coffee in the mornings, and the sweet, earthy and warm tobacco burning in Gary’s pipe which reminds her of the Cuban cigar shop in Miami where she spent the afternoon sipping cortaditos with old men, sitting on barrels of dark cured leaves. The feeling of the waʻa moving beneath her feet- the swells of the ocean lifting and dropping and twisting her - her feet are accustomed now to shifting quickly, like a constant dance. Hearing the waʻa creak as the boards strain and take the slaps and cracks of the waves. Sails that bulge full when there is good wind and the ropes that become tight and hard like iron, squeezing out water droplets and snapping tight against the cleats. The crew and watching the navigators teach each other, how the seasoned watermen make everything look so easy, the joyful laughter shared and the happy bellies Gary fills.
