Chapter 161
Singing to the waves, calling in the light, the love, the clear blue sea and sky. Singing to the mountains, calling in the light, opening to the arms of Nature, welcoming in the new days, the new life, the beginnings of the beginnings.
On the horizon, silver gleams where the earth disappears under its mantle of argent haze. Behind me a dark cloud looms, Vog lingers along the long slopes of the volcano as the Goddess Pele slumbers.
A journey from Puna to Kona-side: Grey skies and incipient rain, a soft, soaking drizzle almost too fine to see, deepens to dark grey, misty, foggy air. Clouds obscuring volcanic peaks. Temperature drops, rises, humidity wraps close on everything. Wet road and limited vision suddenly expands beyond sight into blue skies and green fields, wild goats at the roadside, dry, clear air and the line of blue on the horizon manifests itself as the edge of the Pacific once again.
The eerie, black and grey crenellated landscape sports only the magical beginnings of ōhiʻa lehua trees, unique to these islands, unique in their ability to seed and sprout among the fresh lava rocks. These are the beginning of the lush lands of Hawaii.
In three days the Goddess Temple will be activated: A gathering of pure souls, interested parties, curious minds and creative spirits will come together to launch the essence of this volcanic construction into the etheric network. There will be music, prayer, song, dance and some ceremonial chai. All this in the verdant over-abundance of green; Papaya tree grows from the lava rock foundation of the temple itself, Lilikoi (Passion Fruit) spread their vines across every aspect of the land and ropes suspending tarps that create outdoor living spaces free from the daily rains. Hibiscus flowers not harvested for the teas are bobbing on the highest points of the bushes, Cacao pods hang wrinkled, pendulous, chocolate-dreams… Jackfruit bigger than footballs spin spiked skins pulling tree limbs towards earth and above all, giant ōhiʻa lehua trees spread branches and red blooms, their trunks echo back and forth between the supports of the house and the living limbs surrounding everything.
Meanwhile, a Peruvian goddess hosts me so we can share fun, harp-playing, Thai massage. We sit on the hill above Kona, on a sheltered lanai looking out over the ocean, watching the weather patterns play across the waters and sky. The roosters here begin crowing around 2am to keep us all on our toes. My friend Lenda lives not far from here, but right at the water’s edge, behind a locked gate in an area inhabited only by Hawaiians. She is the only Haole (foreigner) hānai-ed into the Hawaiian families there. We are fortunate to be able to enjoy the serene simplicity of this place, unadulterated by commerce or ‘improvements’. Only the sea… we have to stop and park the rental car beneath huge trees and await a 4wd ride across the sand where it’s constantly changed by high tides. In more tumultuous weather, there is no getting in and out of here.
In fact, there is but one narrow channel out between the rocks where it is sometimes safe to swim to the ocean. Fantuzzi decides to swim, the high water/wave warning has just been lifted, the seas are far from calm. Sharon opts to go with. I am not present for the arranging or I would have stepped in and added cautionary notes… I watch them swim out with some apprehension. I see them swim far to the north, in these seas it’s a hard swim. F can handle it, but I know that he and I swim longer and further than any but the most dedicated, and these days with my various injuries, I am loathe to enter at all on this type of beach. On their return, the challenge is to align with the safe channel, so I position myself and wave like an airport guide. Fantuzzi makes it in almost without drama, only having to adjust for a few waves… but Sharon gets halfway and is swept back…and again, and again. Fantuzzi goes back out. I watch the energy draining as her mental state shakes a little and his strength is sapped by physically helping her amid tumbling careless waves. 911 is called, but they finally make it back to shore. I whip off my sarong and wrap it around Sharon, hugging her tight to keep her upright. There is a taste of shock and relief strong in the air. The emergency folk are cancelled and we all recover, although my equilibrium is definitely shaken. Caution is advised with the great powerful ocean and the great powerful volcano side-by-side. This is not an island for the unaware.
Be peaceful, Kat Dancer
bodymudra@gmail.com
403-931-3866 (h) +1 415 525 2630 (c)
