kauai 2009 :: overcome

i was overcome with awe whenever i saw sunsets like this one.

i decided to camp at anini beach the night of november 9th. so i walked over there with my pack and plopped myself down at the beach. (which i later realized was the wrong side of the beach...the side no one camps at).

good thing i struck up conversation with a nomadic hippy collecting seashells. we sat next to each other while she told me her story. when her partner met up with us, i asked them if i could go with them to their campsite to set up camp. they gladly welcomed me - a stranger - to their situational 'ohana when we arrived and i was welcome into a group of people i don't normally find myself spending time with: nomads, permanent campers, alaskan ganja farmers, homeless, hippies, travelers, ... except, despite our varied backgrounds, what we all had in common was that we are all explorers in search of meaning, adventure, fun, ... pieces of ourselves.

let me show you some of what i saw and a couple folks i met ::

i set up shop here.


this is where dear girdwood #2 was set up. why girdwood? b/c there were at least 5 people from the small town of girdwood there at the same time. trippy, no?

saw old beauties with exposed roots

here's bonnie from washington, a fellow adventurer. she is in love with kauai. she's 72 and still very much alive & well. she's blind in one eye but can see more clearly than some who have sight in both eyes. bonnie, her traveling companion april, and i spent the most of the next day together. they generously showered me with rides, time together, good eats, honesty, and laughter. then...we departed ways.

met a little one who has quite an interesting pair of parents who birth him into the world. they welcomed me to eat with them that night (along with half the campsite).

the sun begins to set.

view from inside the tent at sunset.

at way-too-early-o'clock, the campsite patrol folk came by to check for my permit.
i pay my $5 and enjoy the rest of the sunrise. the moon was still out!

and this is what it looked like a little later in the morning.


and so it was...
beauty at anini.
'ohana.
awe.

kauai 2009 :: hitchhiking

it's a way of life in kauai.
i decided not to rent a car during my stay. i just figured it would work out alright w/o one. so, hitch hiking became my way. i did it almost everyday, multiple times in a given day to get to where i wanted to go.

let me tell you, i met SO MANY PEOPLE while hitch hiking.
the picker-uppers came in all shapes, colors, smells, sizes... but one thing definitely characterized all of them: what it told me about the people.

take jeffrey (above) for example.
it's sunday morning... 8am. i decided to check out calvary chapel kauai, but didn't know if anyone was even awake to give me a ride. who knew what the traffic would be like out at the princeville bus stop? so i put my intention out there and decided i would catch a ride if i was meant to go.

i stood by the stop w/ my muddy red feet, backpack in tow and stuck my thumb out.
jeffrey was probably the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd car that came my way who pulled over to give me a ride. he said he pulled over because he wondered what the heck i was doing out there.

he drove and we chatted away while heading south about 20 miles to kapa'a. on the way, i asked him about the "secret" waterfall in kilauea and how i might find it. so, he asks if i want to see the lighthouse. (lol, i'm pretty sure there was some connection as to why it went from waterfalls to the lighthouse & the transition wasn't as abrupt as i just described it.) jeffrey busts a U in his minivan and we head into the town. he gives me a little tour, i take some photos, and take that picture of him. (he looked so masculine with the morning light shining overhead above the hills.) anyway, he chat more about family, life, etc and he takes me the rest of the way. then we depart ways after a meaningful life exchange.

what strikes me about hitch hiking in kauai ::
1. how open & trusting people are.
sure, i don't have bloody fangs coming out of my mouth nor was i holding some large weapon, but even if i did, i think someone would still give me a ride. (fine. this is a stretch.)

2. they go out of their way to help another person.
they are not so scheduled and driven that they "drive by" opportunities to help (yes, pun intended). by default, people create space in their lives to do these things....and so it's not "out of their way" type of activity, it's "a way of life" activity.

i want that.
i want my way of life to be about slowing down, creating space, and letting generosity flow.
i want to pick up those thumb-sticker-outter-liz's on random 8am sunday mornings.

thanks & giving

every
day
should
be
thanks
giving
day

on a personal note,
there is so much to be grateful for this year. i moved in with the fosths, got my own place, married off two great friends, learned to listen to my body, flourished in a great workplace, deepened in self-awareness, took plenty of risks and made plenty of mistakes, made new friends, traveled to kauai, [dot dot dot]. there's so much to list.

but this year, i'm particularly thankful that i get to celebrate meeting the fosths one year ago this thanksgiving. i'm still amazed that God brought our lives together after one evening of "chemistry;" and now, we share our lives in ways one might not have expected when first meeting a stranger. who knew?!

thank you for opening up your lives, your family, & your hearts to me. i am truly blessed.

kauai 2009 :: it begins like this.

11.4.09 i land in lihue on the island of kauai & geo picks me up in his truck, loaded with a warm welcome to the island. we head to his farm where i plan to wwoof for 8 days.

the farm at night is a pure darkness coupled with moonlit fields & a starstruck sky.

i met john, cory, & weston :: fellow travelers and journey(wo)men.
i slept in an airstream because the goat shed was just a little too much.
used an outdoor toilet and outdoor communal shower.
got over 100 mosquito bites in 2 days. (at least 50 of them on my right leg alone.)
sanded all the rust off a truck bed railing thingamabopper & painted it.
helped rebuild (i.e. re-tarp) the outdoor community kitchen.
ate my introductory local avocado (or avo) that first night. it was heaven.
planted the seeds of a multitude of vegetables.
learned about cory's nomadic life and where she found/made home amid homelessness.
weston played his didgeridoo for me and i found myself completely entranced.


but
i left after 3 days b/c i could not live in peace with the mosquitoes. i did not want to serve up my body again for their nightly feast. as soon as i got over my mental barrier that i was not a wuss for leaving, i got out of there in a hurry!

this was indeed an adventurous introduction to kauai.

kauai 2009 :: look again.

things are never as they seem at first glance.
people are never as they seem at first glance.

try taking another angle. look above .. look below .. look sideways .. cross your eyes and stare .. look away .. then look again.

what if we tried this with the people around us. what if we tried our very very best to love & accept the person standing in front you? what would we find?

mystery?
intrigue?
sunshine?
curiosity?
resilience?
a courageous story?

all of these things, yes. but perhaps it's not so much about what we find out about them, but how we are transformed by the process of getting to know a fellow human. when we are curious & open...our hearts awaken, our fears dissipate, our light shines forth & we grow into the being we were created to be.

thriving transplants.
picture taken at farm in kapa'a

i'm going away.

off to a long-awaited adventure.

kauai has been beckoning me this year, in the most subtle & boldest of ways.

to come & see beauty.
to play.
to rest & sleep.
to exhaust my body.
to connect with the earth.
to be inspired.
to cathart.
to hope.dream.love.
& ... . .. .to be loved.

and i've answered its call.



so, i'm leaving home...to find home again.




it's inexplicable & mysterious.
and i've been moved to tears as i prepare for this trip.
b/c i sense something very beautiful is near.

if you remember :: i would appreciate your thoughts & prayers for this trip.
i sense it will be sacred in so many ways.

& my heart doesn't know how else to respond but with the shedding of humbled tears.


...
& for those curious folks (b/c i am too) ::
some of what i'll be doing is :: working on a co-op farm, surfing, romping around, backpacking in the na pali coast, eating a lot of fruit, reading forgotten books, capturing moments, & living inspired. (go figure).

i'll be back to the farm on nov.19, a few days before i ring in the 27. :)