Spring Into Spring

Today, standing near where our home was

This week celestial events gave us the drama of a SUPER MOON and the first day of SPRING. Also this week we were invited to do a TV interview about the devastating experience of losing our home last year, the trauma of evacuation, the anxiety of dealing with the insurance claim, the stress of living in four places in less than nine months, and our focus on recovery and starting over -- from scratch.

Given this conjunction of events, we decided to mark our "spring" as a personal "new beginning" by visiting Fissure #8, now a prominent and permanent 200 foot landmark in Leilani Estates.. Of the many lessons we have learned throughout this past year perhaps the most important is to look fear directly in the face, or as Pema Chodron reminds us -- to invite in what scares us.

Lunel placing our offering

Art by Jessica Taruni
Originally created for The Volcano Inn 1999

Standing at the base of the cone, we offered ho'okupu (offering) with a flower lei Lunel had made with orchids from our home. She sang an oli (chant) of gratitude for all we have learned and received. It was our first time visiting the place where our home stood, but we both felt ready.

After the loss of our home, many people asked whether we were going to leave Hawaii -- but honestly that thought never occurred to us as we both feel deeply connected to the 'aina - a Hawaiian word that means not only "the land" itself, but a relationship with the whole island-environment, itself a symbol of destruction and creation. Recently we even bought a beautiful, large stained glass window to place in our new home.

Please listen to this talk by Auntie Pua. It is short but packed with power -- about the changing of seasons, a celebration of the SUN, and our place in this world of reciprocal cycles.

 Auntie Pua --

 The Intense Breath of  the Sun

This week's HAPPY colors!

I am a color junkie. I suffer sensory overload in a fabric store and have been known to steal paint chips. I always thought I would like a job naming paint colors. Well, this week's colors are....

Pantone 585U, 381U, 386U, 345U... huh?
Don't you think they need appropriate NAMES!

Amazing bananas and avocados abound, and orchid cactus are blooming and even compliment the billowy fabric ceiling in the lanai.

A friend asked for help in painting a 9x12' fabric mural to hang up for Thanksgiving, and we also had fun painting tables and benches --- in some of the same colors.

Phil harvesting limes

We had a relatively dry summer and were considerably under normal rainfall, but in the last three weeks have had some flashy storms and good long rains -- the garden is loving it. And, there's every shade of GREEN imaginable n

Leilani Estates is a very quiet neighborhood, occasional dogs, lawn mower, or toot-toot of the UPS truck. I don't use music - just the birds. Working with the land I am able to just turn off my thoughts; it is so peaceful, rejuvenating and healing. Just this week I've planted trees, flowers, ground covers, dozens of colorful ti plants.


Politically, in contrast to this vibrancy, this year looks and feels like some kind of really awful, sickly unnameable color! Trying to read and understand current events in America and throughout the world has been difficult. It has been a challenge to not clinch up in anger, frustration or fear, and I have spent an extra number of hours beautifying nearly the whole acre. We are so THANKFUL for this blessed home; has become a sanctuary - a healing place for soul and spirit. This 'aina is truly a living land!

Wishing you and yours 
a whole WEEK of giving thanks!

Malama o ka 'Aina

Pohoiki is 4 miles (as crows fly) - but the meander through mango trees, papaya fields and organic farms takes 15 min

Life on the 'wild side' on the Big Island -- no high rise condos, no fancy hotels or 4-lane highways. In fact getting down to the ocean is part one-way because no one will be cutting down an old mango tree! We think we are the luckiest folks.

We are fortunate also for great activities in our local association facilities and that a lovely local educator offers weekly classes in Hawaiian language and culture here in our small subdivision called Leilani Estates.

We have long been interested in indigenous cultures and traditions, and it was important to us that we learn about the values of traditional Hawaiians. A few words specifically address some of the depth of the Hawaiian language..

kuleana - responsibility and commitment
malama - caring for 
'aina - the land (not as "land ownership" 
but in relationship with all aspects of the environment

Some of our nearby friends and neighbors have lived here for 25-30 years and we feel very lucky to have found them and be included in our Leilani Ohana (extended family.) Phil joins other volunteers with weed whacker and rakes to join a group of local citizens who care for our local park and swimming area. By doing regular weed whacking along the park, they are helping to eliminate the use of pesticides along our local shoreline.

Even an I write this blog entry on 6/27 we had two small earthquakes last night just off the coast in this area -- once again a reminder that our adventure here is at the grace of mighty forces -- it is a vital, living land like no other we have ever encountered.

Please enjoy watching  this very short video. The first section is of of the area where the volunteers work, and near the end (about a 1/2 mile) is of our favorite swimming spots. Both are only a few minutes from our house. -- 
Video of Pohoiki Bay

Phil's Koa Root

Ancestor Root of Koa - P. J. Haysmer

Photo by Kim Kornbacher (kimkornbacherphotography.com)

Part of fun of the art process Phil and I share is seeing the before and after -- for this one I really regret not having a "before" photo to show how Phil brought out the beauty of this gnarled koa tree root.  The Koa tree here on the Big Island is held in high esteem culturally.  


In the Hawaiian language (one of the two "official languages of Hawai'i) KOA has many meanings, but the first is brave, bold, fearless, valiant with the second meaning of soldier, warrior, and the third meaning being the largest of native forest trees...formerly used for canoes, surfboards and calabashes.

Ke Mole o Koa

A familiar story: Trees in Trouble -- For 22 years we lived in Humboldt County, the land of the giant Redwood trees that helped built major cities all along the West Coast.  Decades of clear-cut logging created a significant decline in the number of ancient giants with lives spanning 2,000 years and more. Here in Hawai'i 10% of the original Koa forest ecosystem is still intact.




The ancient Hawaiian delicate ecosystems evolved without any grazing mammals. Therefore, the native plants developed no natural system to resist the development of grazing lands for cattle in the 1800's. Since Koa is a legume and is a nitrogen fixing species, it is highly desirable to non-native grazing animals such as pigs, cattle, goats and sheep.  Deforested cattle grazing areas also impacted many bird species whose ground nest building was negatively impacted as well.

There is a Hawaiian proverb that says:  I ulu no ka lala i ke kumu which translated says, "The branches grow because of the trunk."  It is part of the consciousness we have found here in Hawai'i that honors heritage, lineage, and the malama o ka 'aina. the care of the land.

(Phil's piece is for sale:  $800)



  

Earth Moving!

Earth Move Under My Feet!               

http://earthquaketrack.com/r/hawaii-hawaii/recent

Here on the "Island of Puna" our lives just now are impacted daily by what is happening across the surface of the land. While lava is still flowing (with fits and starts) it IS flowing and while our focus is on what’s happening above ground, there’s also a lot of action happening just below ground too.  Earthquakes happen in Hawaii all the time, and rather than being deeply submerged at the base of tectonic plates, most of them are related to Pele’s constant movement. (Most are only 2-4 km below the surface.) 

Lilikoi Fruit and Red Potatoes

Yesterday, we had another kind of below-ground experience as we dug up our first potatoes!!  It was an experiment that my grandmother would have approved of; as a mid-west farmer in the early 1900’s the land supplied all their needs from cows to chickens, from fruits to vegetables and her daily life began at 4am and re-defines our notion of a 24/7 work week!

So I think of her as we begin to harvest from our own garden.  Yesterday we also picked another batch of lilikoi fruit from our fast-growing vine, and pulled up a small but handsome batch of potatoes.  Oddly enough, they were the same blush of color.  Yesterday I also trimmed the branches of our maple-leaf hibiscus – a deep crimson color, so our table is blessed with these beautiful hues for our fall harvest.  Malalo!  Malama ka ‘Aina!

Mountain of Wealth

20 yards of wealth

Here in PUNA on the Big Island of Hawaii, wealth is  measured in a variety of ways.  For native Hawaiians it is measured by their strong family relationships -- ohana.  Wealth is also measured by the relationship with the land and its gifts to us as we care for it -- aina.  Here, wealth is also measured by the rain water in our catchment basins and our garden produce.


In almost two years here, we have had numerous deliveries of soil and cinder to create rich beds for fruit trees, flowers and gardens.  And today, we received another load of rich dark cinder/soil.  The black crushed cinder is rich in nutrients.  As you may know, this land (particularly in PUNA) is so new sometimes there is less than 1/2 soil on top of lava, so building up beds, or breaking down through lava is the only way we can plant and grow.

POKO found the mountain of wealth too inviting  --- and who knows what might be on the other side!!

(Couple people inquired where we got it: Check out Sanfords website:  http://sanfordsinc.com

Would a Wood Chuck Chuckle?

Phil continues to spend hours in his workshop making wonderful new pieces.  This "character" piece is entitled  -- "A Tear for the Love of the Aina."

There are many kinds of wood here on the Big Island -- the clock is made from Kamani wood.

And, he has already sold a clock and one of his "characters" and is meeting other artists while he does his gallery sitting on Wednesday at One Gallery in downtown Hilo.

Daily Delights

While I am waiting out the red-tape process of getting set up for MRI and seeing an orthopedist about my right knee, I'm admittedly limited to hobbling about, but still finding joy in everyday things, like geckos sunning themselves in the kitchen window.  On a good day I am using a cane, and on not-so-good days, I use a pair of crutches Phil found cheap at our local Pahoa Transfer Station (the FREE dump.)

We LOVE going to our dump!!  Not only is our dump free, it processes recycling of all kinds,and it also offers a delightful outdoor store for re-purposed stuff.  People who are getting rid of things, can drop them off at the little shop where you can buy some good things really cheap -- like used crutches!

The motto at the dump is "sust aina bility" which is play on the Hawaiian word "aina."  Literal translations from the Hawaiian dictionary (Pukui-Elbert) include "refuse" (like throw away), eat or consume.  However, it also seems to have a richer and more complex meaning, having to do with stewardship, responsibility -- and a relationship between the people and the land, as in AINA -  the life of the land.  (Photos from Big Island Chronicle)