As an adolescent, Barack Obama, shown with his daughters, explored Honolulu with his grandfather. He retains his connection with Hawaii./MARCO GARCIA/ASSOCIATED PRESS

By JEFF ZELENY


KAILUA, Hawaii - Even at the end of his long journey to win the White House, one question about Barack Obama came up again and again: How did he appear to stay even-tempered and levelheaded while traveling such a grueling road?

At least part of the answer can be found here on the island of Oahu.

As President-elect Obama walked the beaches during his recent vacation, returning to the place of his birth and his adolescence, he was relaxing after the most trying year of his life and recharging for the responsibilities that awaited. And friends say he did both with an unexcitable steadiness that is a product of his Hawaiian upbringing.

The mood of Mr.Obama, to many observers here in Hawaii, embodies the Aloha Spirit, a peaceful state of mind and a friendly attitude of acceptance of a variety of ideas and cultures. More than simply a laid-back vibe, many Hawaiians believe in a divine and spiritual power that provides a sustaining life energy.

“When Obama gets on television, the national pulse goes down about 10 points,”said Representative Neil Abercrombie, a Hawaii Democrat who was friends with Mr.Obama’s parents.“He has this incredibly calming effect. There’s no question in my mind it comes from Hawaii.”

Mr.Abercrombie, who has known the president-elect since he was born, said Mr.Obama’s tranquil, evenkeeled mannerisms resembled those of his grandfather, Stanley Dunham. As a child, Mr.Obama would follow Mr.Dunham everywhere, walking through the neighborhoods of Honolulu and beyond.

“He gives off a little oasis of calm,”Mr.Abercrombie said of Mr.Obama.“He is peaceful water in the maelstrom, which will serve him very well in these circumstances when there happens to be a crisis.”

Only a year ago, many of his admirers fretted that Mr.Obama was too passive in his battle against Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. Later, some Democrats worried whether he had the tenacity to fight Senator John McCain and the Republican establishment.

It was only as the economic crisis deepened and a full-on recession was declared that Mr.Obama’s hard-toruffle demeanor came into focus as a valuable attribute.

As he traveled across the United States mainland during the presidential race, campaigning on a promise of a different kind of politics, Mr.Obama was repeatedly asked by voters and reporters whether he had the stomach to win the contest. His standard answer- He learned how - and when - to be tough from navigating the harsh world of Chicago politics.

Left unsaid was that he learned his composure from Hawaii.

“He has more Hawaii in him than Chicago; he’s laid-back, cool and collected,”said Noel Kent, a professor of ethnic studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa who has lived on the island for three decades.“It’s hard to express anger here. It’s a very small, enclosed environment in which you have to live with other people.”

Last summer, as Mr.Obama visited in London with David Cameron, the head of the British Conservative Party, he was overheard talking about how leaders need to take time away to think. Without taking time off, Mr.Obama said,“you start making mistakes or you lose the big picture.”

That is why Mr.Obama spent the closing days of 2008 back in Hawaii, recharging the Aloha Spirit.