Kai is short for Kaimana, my Hawaiian middle name. It means "diamond of the sea," and it's where Makai gets its name. I grew up on O'ahu, and my grandma brought her Polaroid to every family gathering. She'd snap a photo, pull the print, and hand it to someone before it had even passed. I still have that camera. I still bring it to family events. That instinct to catch what's actually happening hasn't changed. I'm always looking for the same things: a real smile, two people absorbed in each other, an expression that was never meant for a camera.