Lava Land Part 25: What Now?

By Jill Steele

Author "Blood on the Orchids
Owner Hawaiian Magic Tropical Flowers

Honolii

As I prepared for Hurricane Lane, I noticed my dog Luna watching me remove everything from the lanai.  I pictured a thought bubble over her head saying, “What now? Are we moving again?” When it began raining, she hid in the back bedroom even though I had, by that time, started cooking dinner.  She didn’t want to risk being put outside. 

Last week we purchased a sofa. Now our family can come together other than only at mealtimes. A dining table would complete our home.  We are waiting to find the right table but we need to find one before Thanksgiving.

I let myself slide into a depression this week, after a day spent making lists and then valuing the contents of my Kapoho house. How do you put a real value on dishes and goblets that have been passed down from your mother? I know how fortunate we were and are, but I am still grieving.  I have a habit of wondering at any given moment, what I’d be doing if I were still in Kapoho.  This was true, especially during the three days of heavy rain we just experienced.  Most probably we would have lost power and cell phone service, but we would have been fine, reading and taking walks in the rain.

We are walking a lot despite the stormy weather.  With the heavy rainfall, the Honolii Stream became a raging river and small landslides partially blocked the roads. We are seeing things we would not have if we were still in Kapoho.  Mother nature is constantly at work changing the island. The beach at Honolii has shifted due to the storm and there is a sandbar just past the shallows that has changed the shape of the waves, causing them to barrel. The surfers are not waiting for the water to clear and are riding waves in the brown water filled with trash, mud, pesticides and literally, crap.  Logs and uprooted trees float in the deep water next to them. I've overheard conversations while standing on the cliff gazing out at the waves.  The surfers aren't complaining about the changes to their beach and the waves. They are getting out there to experience this new phenomenon. I need to take a lesson from the surfers and embrace our new life.

By Jill Steele

Author "Blood on the Orchids
Owner Hawaiian Magic Tropical Flowers