Footprints

In the sand
.....a meandering line of footprints
.....testify to the remembrance of a life
.....passing through.
As the waves roll in,
.....the imprints soften, fade,
.....and then disappear,
.....as if never there.
Will that be my story?

Comments: I was walking on Makena Beach on Maui and noticed footprints that were disappearing with each wave. At that moment, I asked the question that many of us do.

The Grass and Sea

Green clings onto volcanic rock,
......waves washing over it.
What is the source of life?
There is no soil
......only once molten rock.
The sea continually scrubs,
......trying to remove
......the intruding blades
......embedded in what appears impenetrable.

Life is often like this grass,
......creation evolving
......from the impossible.

Comments: As I travel and observe, I am often amazed at how plants can sprout from unexpected locations, e.g. trees from granite rock faces and plants from volcanic rock.  One morning following tai chi on the beach I saw rocks covered with grass as the waves crashed over them–hence the poem.  The top picture to the right is the scene that inspired the poem.


A Respite at Ali'i Kula
...............Lavender Garden

Imagine being bathed
....in the perfumes of lavender
....as the breeze carries
....the scents to your senses.
The Maui sun
....warms the neck
....despite the altitude’s crispness.
Sitting on an Adirondack chair
....amidst acres of lavender,
....one peers out to the sea
....miles below
....as songbirds serenade.
Imagine being in paradise.

Comments: When I first visited Ali’i Chang’s Kula Lavender Farm (AKL) slightly over five years ago, I enjoyed the vistas, lack of crowds, and the new knowledge about lavender that I garnered through the visit.  Since that time AKL has become a well-known tourist site for those looking for a nontraditional tourist activity.  Today, the crowds have increased, because the secret is out, and the manicured grounds have more than doubled.  The vistas remain as gorgeous as before.  Ali’i has built a reputation as an innovative horticulturist that makes wise use of land and environment. The day I wrote the poem, I found a quiet place and simply savored the moments.

____________________________

Grass and Stone

The tall grass waves in the breezes
....barely revealing the cross
....marking a life now passed.
Whose bones lie beneath
....this unattended grave?

The gray stone symbolizes
....someone once loved.
The grass tells a story
....of someone long forgotten

Time fads and grass grows.

Comments: One morning I was walking to a small neighborhood Hawaiian market and passed a small graveyard. Some of the graves were well-tended while others were overgrown. Hence, the poem evolved.

The view I saw when writing the poem
Farther up looking down at the place from where I wrote
The neglected cross that inspired the poem
Kiteboarder and sailboarders at Ho'okipa Point
Haleakala Crater at 10,000 ft.
Vignette: Living Like a Local

Over the decades of traveling I have often wondered what it would like to live in the place I was visiting. This year I chose to live for almost five weeks in a location I have visited eighteen times, Hawaii, specifically Maui. Janice and I are staying in a small condo right behind Mamma's Fish House just outside of Paia. Paia is on the quieter side of the island. This small town, a favorite of mine, is filled with an abundance of "characters" who live life "their way." Mixed in are tourists passing through, usually on the way to Hana.

Over the weeks, we have learned where to shop, the location of movie theaters, best times to avoid traffic, and a myriad of other minutiae necessary to acclimate to a new location. We quickly learned that what we knew about Maui was minuscule to what we needed to know to live daily life here. In short, the experience is like moving to a new community.

Even more fun are the people we have met from Lee, the tai chi guru, to Howie in Maui to the woman in the little store down the road who is outspoken, passionate, and running for county office.

What have I learned? I want to return and live here longer in this "Land of Aloha." I really do not want to leave...:-)

Looking across the farmland to Haleakala
You get wet on the final hundred yards to the Twin Falls

Surfer getting ready to head out
.

Ke'anae Peninsula at MM16 off the Hana Highway.

Baldwin Beach almost unknown by tourists - a favorite for me
A view from Baldwin - a bit rough today for swimming
Iao Valley, filled with tragic Hawaiian history
Click on the icon if you entered this site from another and wish to go to my homepage.