The other night I took a trip down to the Keauhou Beach Resort, to the Verandah Lounge, which overlooks a lagoon on the Pacific to watch the sunset and have a beer. As I was sitting there enjoying a Red Ale from Kona Brewing Company, bathed in the gentle salty ocean breeze and the warm glow of the sunset, I could feel the spirits of the island calling. I took a deep breath and as I let it flow out, I let my focus soften and let myself slip into a light trance as I watched the waves break on the rocks at the edge of the lagoon. As the noise of the lounge became a whisper, I noticed a fiery red dancing on the crest of the waves and realize it was Pele. Pele, the goddess of the volcanoes here on the big island, and her sister, Namakaokaha’i, goddess of the water, are said to not be on the best of terms and so it was a real treat to watch Pele dancing on the crest of the waves. Although they are not on the best of terms, I could see them playfully dancing together in celebration of the beautiful sunset, there differences put aside for this evening.
Sorry I don’t have a picture to put of with this, but I didn’t have my camera with me, and it simply would not have captured the magic anyway. Sometimes you just have to be there.
I had a friend who lived in Hawaii for many years. She was a dance teacher and many forms of dance including Hula. I’m presently grieving my loss as she was a close friend who passed over just 3 weeks ago. I spent many hours with my friend who recounted the Pele legends to me and shared her photos of Pele the crater of Kilauea. The sight you saw must have been spectacular. I hope one day by some miracle I will be able to see it too.
The lava is flowing into the ocean quite rambunctiously once again here on the other side (of the Big Island) and it’s also flowing into the Visitor Viewing area parking lot. There’s no longer an official Visitor Viewing area. I haven’t seen it myself since I need to be cautious of being around the fumes, but friends have found it spectacular. I love the power of the elements on this gorgeous island. I live with my husband not too far from Kalapana, recent immigrants too.
I didn’t get a chance to get down there, but some friends went down and said the parking lot was virtually gone and the barricades were down as well. When they asked about going down to the sea, the ranger just said, be very careful, carry a stick and do a lot of poking to make sure you aren’t stepping into molten lava, and wear sturdy shoes. I guess it was incredibly hot, and of course the fumes were pretty bad, but where else could you get the chance to be 10 or 20 feet from a lava flow? And you are certainly right about the power of the elements here. This island is soooo alive.
A week ago we went swimming with the Manta Rays. I’ll be posting about that perhaps this weekend.