EVERYONE HAS A STORY - Week Nine
WEEK #9
April 25th- May 1st
LIFE OUTSIDE THE HOUSE
There’s only one thing I’m going to dwell on this week – we got out of the house! Starting on Saturday, a small amount of outdoor gathering spots were open to the public, with restrictions. Social distancing had to be observed, no loitering or gathering on the sand, water activity only, and follow the rules or be fined. Hiking trails were minimal, especially those that were suitable for a whole family and a dog.
Saturday, we hiked a trail at Kahuluomanu Park. I could only make it about 3.5 miles, as it got very steep and rocky toward the top, but the rest of the family continued for about another half mile. This is the Hawaii I’d heard about! After two months on the island, I still didn’t get it. Sure, it was beautiful, I knew that, but there are places unlike any other I had ever seen that I was finally able to experience. The weather was mild, the air was calm, the sun was warm but not hot. The photo ops kept me behind the group at times, but the incredible beauty kept my phone-camera clicking. I have been walking almost every day since I arrived, but this was another kind of muscle movement, a challenge for these old bones, but the weird part was, it wasn’t hard…just a little tricky with the rocky path.
Sunday, we left early for Moanalua Beach, where there was a sandbar that stretched for about ¾ of a mile, and with high tide, you could wade all the way out to the ocean waves in knee deep water! The currents kept shifting, and in parts there was a rocky bottom, and me with no shoes. Yeah, I kinda took a spill, no harm, water was warm and shallow, just a little embarrassed. When we finally got to the ocean, I just stood, silent, enthralled with the 360 degree view that was nothing short of magic. I would have done anything for a camera but not smart, I realized, to bring my phone into the open water. It would have been destroyed with my fall, but photos from the shore don’t begin to tell the picture. Plus, by the time we waded back to the beach, the tide had receded, so my water experience disappeared in a matter of moments. My legs ached from this different type of exercise, we were out there for at least an hour, but I am fortunate to have a mental picture of this spiritual moment. No words to adequately describe the feeling. Time just stopped, and I stood there, knee-deep in a pool of endless blue and green, surrounded by picturesque landscape in every direction, staring at the distant shore…like I was walking on water.
As long as the restrictions continue to relax, we will be out and about every weekend, but the weekdays are still a blur of “work from home” for my niece and nephew, and school work for the little one. There are three short weeks left in this school year and all summer camps have been cancelled, so it will take a lot of ingenuity and patience to play out the next three to six months. On May 29th, I will be leaving Hawaii with a very different experience than what I had originally anticipated. I’m anxious to return home, but know I will miss this little family that has become my thread during the unraveling of our planet. I will leave, however, knowing that I made a difference to their situation and they will soon be able to live the new life they dreamt about on this beautiful island.
UPSIDE
I’ve written 25,000 words of my third novel, MIRACLE.
I had a Zoom Neighborhood Book Club Meeting with readers that I had planned to join back home. It was a great diversion and an hour and a half of great conversation!
I have seen beautiful places and created warm memories to keep forever with people I love.
