A day of rest

Sunday sunset stroll

Today we went to church.  We had wonderful meetings and I felt so uplifted by the talks and lessons, so filled with love.  We came home and ate and visited together for awhile, before everyone headed off in their own directions to read, rest, or visit some more.  I saw Elena putting some stitches on a doll blanket.  Mary was wandering around the yard and came in with some flowers.  There is a feeling of quiet and peace pervading here, that doesn't exist throughout the rest of the week. Later on we'll gather again and have our family fono (that's Samoan for meeting).  During this meeting we'll discuss the family calendar, read scriptures together, pray and sing.  A lot of times we end up outside sitting on the driveway in the cooler night breezes, looking out at the stars and telling stories.  Sometimes we all go for a walk on the beach and come home in the fading light. Sunday is our day of rest.  It's the day we put aside the usual weekly activities and focus on Father in Heaven, and it's family time, too.  I find that when I've focused on holy things and rested my body on Sundays, the rest of the week is better-more focused, more productive. Sundays recharge my batteries-both spiritual and physical- and that's something I really need.

Lookout point

Elena on a more recent hike, contemplating

The first time we took Elena on a certain hike, she was just little, and a little anxious. We were far away from what was familiar to her, under the cover of trees for most of the time, with bends and twists that kept her in the shadows, and from seeing what was up ahead. She expressed concern, but we all kept telling her that everything was going to be fine, and not to worry or be afraid.  

There's a certain point along the path where there is a break in the trees, allowing the hiker an awesome panoramic view of the ocean and the town below.  When she came upon this opening, she stood on a little rock, and said with wonder and delight, "I can see the world, and the world is beautiful!"  I don't think she's ever been afraid on a hike since.

There are times when, because of the shadows, we don't see all the good things in our lives, or we have no idea what wonderful things are coming because our view is obstructed.  Every once in awhile, during those times, there is an opening of light and sight, and we get a glimpse, a view of how wonderful and wondrous life can be, or really is.  I love those lookout points, the view they give makes all the toil along the trail worth it. 

Fish quilt

Scott and I were invited to a first year birthday party for the baby girl of one of his coworkers.  First year birthdays are a big deal around here.  We wanted to make something special for this friend's baby because Scott likes him so much and because this little girl is a miracle baby, so there was a lot to be grateful for, and so much reason to celebrate.  This friend loves to go fishing and camping, so we decided on a quilt for his girl that was big enough for the whole family and tough enough to get roughed up on their adventures.  Everyone pitched in to help (except for our sleeping Mary).  Scott and I went and picked out some canvas, then he and Jesse cut it.  I dyed the top piece an aqua/turquoise color.  Jesse sewed the two pieces and a light batting into a quilt, while Siwa was making some fish stencils out of cardboard, and gathering her paints.  Elena and Jesse used the stencils to paint the fish shapes on the canvas and Siwa went over the fish again adding color and detail.  Last of all, Jesse sewed around some of the fish eyes to hold the batting in place.  Of course, that was just a brief rundown of the steps of our little experiment, but this is what we came up with:

Stenciling the fish onto the canvas

Laying out the stencils on the last of the empty spots.

Adding the details- no two fishes were alike.

It's so fun when we're working together like this- brainstorming and collaborating, each doing what they can to help out.  I can't think of a better bunch to live and work with each day.  They make my life a heaven on earth and I'm so glad to be a part of their lives, 

and to have them in mine.

We were all proud of our creation.  We stood around looking at it before we bundled it up to wrap, and Scott thanked us for making it happen.  

We had a great time at the party, too.   

Flowers part 1 by Siwa

A close up on a cluster of bromeliad flower buds. Bromeliads are a family of tropical ornamentals. The most well known plant in this family is the pineapple.

One year we tried growing beans in our garden. This plant soon took off and tried to conquer part of our front yard. We got hundreds of beans from it. I love the shape of bean or pea flowers. These white ones always made me think of the word "Purity".

Cattleya orchids

A closeup on a Zinnia bud. These beautiful flowers come in many different shades of pinks, magentas and oranges.

Two Zinnias.

The male flowers of a papaya tree. If you look close on the highest petal pointing to the left you can see a Gulf Fritillary butterfly's egg. The Gulf fritillary Butterfly does not eat any part of the papaya tree, instead its caterpillars eat passion fruit leaves. The butterfly that laid this egg got a little confused because the passion fruit vine grew around the papaya tree.

Vervain (Stachytarpheta cayennensis) this flower grows along many of the mountain trails here in Hawaii. The flowers are edible and taste somewhat like mushrooms. Do not eat any plant unless positively identified.

North Shore excursion- Haleiwa Town

The girls and I went for a drive to the Waimea Farmer's Market.  We made it there around 12:30 pm and read the sign saying that it was open from 3-7pm.  Bummer.  So we drove on to Haleiwa.  Haleiwa town is an old historic surf town.  It hosts the annual Haleiwa Arts Festival that I blogged on earlier. The main street is lined with surf shops, galleries and restaurants- their doors open wide to receive the hundreds of tourists and locals that walk the town each day.  We ate at Kua 'Aina Sandwich, which I hear now has locations in Tokyo and London.  Pretty good for a little sandwich place that started about 38 years ago in a small surf town. I had the avocado burger, which I really like. You can see it come across the screen (probably the fourth image) on the link.  The link is to their Tokyo location but you'll get the idea of the kind of food they serve.  Next we browsed some shops that offered handicrafts, clothing and home decor.  We also checked out two galleries- Tabora and Clark Little.  I've included the links to their galleries and restaurant so you can see some of what we saw (forgot to bring the camera).

I love the feel of this friendly little town. Its a mix of hippie, surfer and artist.  I like that I can find polynesian handicrafts in one shop and something that probably came from Thailand, Bali or Nepal in another. Finally we ended at Longs to buy a pack of milk rolls, because Mary said she was hungry again.  We drove home along the North Shore with the windows down and the music on.  I guess we'll do Waimea another day.

We found this really cool tree at the Haleiwa park on the day of the arts festival.

One of my favorite trees on the drive along the North Shore.

I've included these pics from the arts festival because they're a sampling of some things you can expect to see in the shops in town:

Clouds of change

 The clouds have been on my mind  a lot lately. I've been watching them and wanting to get several shots of one place, over time, showing the progression of clouds as they glide across the sky.  Sometimes there is a a high wind, and they march across the horizon at a clipping pace, changing, dissolving and reforming into something entirely different.  Sometimes there is a dead wind, and the change in their form or shape is barely discernible. People are like that, we experience periods of intense or sudden change, and other times of plodding along, day by day, with no apparent difference at all.  But things are not what they seem, because no matter how unchanged we may feel, there is always movement, always change, even at the calmest of times. When the winds of life seem to be nonexistent, things are happening in and all around us.  We may inch along at a snail's pace or even be blown back for awhile, but we never, ever stay in the same place. These were taken on a very still and seemingly windless day:

11:24 am

11:25 am

11:26 am

During the doldrums, it helps me to remember that we very seldom "arrive" all at once.  Change usually comes a little at a time, over time; so slowly that we often don't realize any type of progress at all, until we look back and remember where we were, and then observe where we are.  It helps knowing that God, who understands me perfectly, doesn't expect immediate perfection from me.  He expects and hopes for progression, incremental, as I am able, with Him helping me all along the way.  With this measured and steady progress, I find myself more able to bear the high winds of change when they do come.  When the doldrums end and the strong winds come rushing in, growth can come intense and quick, but it's the calmer periods that prepare me for them- the daily slow (and maybe barely discernable) progression of trying to do the right thing day in, day out, staying the course, steady as she goes- even if it is in inches (or milimeters).  Today, I'm grateful for doldrums past, for staying the course, and for remembering back to see how far I've come.

Family night roast

It started out at the beach.  

Mary kept jumping off her rock into the water, 

surfacing and then shouting,

 "I'm so glad to be alive!"  

Here they are after- at this point, some are showered and some are still salty, 

but all have eaten and moved on to marshmallow roasting. 

Later we moved indoors, sang, prayed and 

read about the role of families in the church.  

Then we read scriptures.  

It makes me really happy to see my husband explain them to our children. 

 I love that about him.

Now they are watching a movie, 

 and all are showered.

On forgiving

Forgiveness is a hard thing.  It's something I have had occasion to give many times, and many more times to seek for myself.  It's not just a hard thing, I think it's the hardest thing.  At least it is for me.  I am not an easily offended person, but I do have a limit, and once past that limit, forgiveness does not come cheaply to me.  I know I'm supposed to give it, "until seventy times seven" but somehow that doesn't make the doing of it easy.  I know it's the right thing, for my own sake, at least, not to hold on to bitterness and resentment.  Forgiveness frees one from the burden of negativity, the kind that literally eats a person's soul from the inside out.  I know because the negativity has begun feasting on mine numerous times, and it was the conscious choice to stop going down that path that was the beginning of another.  Once I made that choice, I did things like trying to see that person's good points, or from his/her perspective, praying for that person, trying to be humble and let go of the anger, talking to others about it, working through it in my mind.  All these things were good things and helped, but were never enough.  The only sure solution to the search for elusive forgiveness was to pray for forgiveness.  When forgiveness comes to me, the kind needed after serious injuries or offenses, it has been a miracle every time, a gift that was given, because it was beyond my personal ability.  It came to me because I was unable to reach that far, and because I asked for it.  Once forgiveness comes, healing comes with it.  To me forgiveness is healing.  It replaces the misery that has been taken away.  I say taken away, because that's exactly what I mean.  Only God can do the "taking away" and leave the good in its place.  We can do our part by wanting to forgive and trying to forgive, but the actual forgiving comes when He brings it to us and places it in our hearts.  And once God does do that, it takes me staying on my spiritual toes not to let the negativity creep back in.  When I say spiritual toes, I mean, doing the things that keep me close to God like scriptures and prayer, and watching my thoughts.  It all starts in the thoughts.  Those thoughts do come to me, thoughts about wrongs received.  I can choose to indulge in them and throw myself back into the pit of despair, or I can banish them immediately, from the very start.  I don't like the pit of despair.  I've been there before and it's a dark, hellish place.  God has given me the gift of forgiveness many times, after my many and fervent pleas, and in doing so has lifted me up and out of the dark pit of anguish, into the light of healing and happiness. I choose happiness and healing.  I choose liberating forgiveness, and I choose the loving, merciful God who affords it to me.

Ah relief! by Siwa

It has been raining a lot more lately, you can feel summer ending

 and fall beginning when the weather gets like this.

Our Lemongrass after the rain.

Crotons are beautiful plants. No two leaves are ever the same. Each leaf is a different combination of reds, purples, greens, oranges and yellows.

Rain drops on one of our citrus trees.

Another wet Croton.

This is another Croton. You can see the leaf in the background, inverted inside the droplet.

Down in the doldrums

For over a week a hot humid blanket has settled over me.  It's been thick in the air, stifling, sapping. It's been a week of listlessness and mental cloudiness. Not the best atmosphere for blogging. I know I said I wouldn't blog about messy rooms or stressful days, and I'm not, heat is entirely different, right?  Isn't it? Maybe not so different.  Ah well. . .

This morning I woke to find the heat blown away, the ground soaked and limbs hanging heavy with drenched leaves.  A change is in the air.  Just thinking about fall has me rubbing my mental palms together in anticipation. Fall- when we actually get to wear a sweater and long pants, and maybe even socks, when my lavalavas go into a drawer.  It's when we get to snuggle up with a blanket and read a good book, and think deep thoughts; but the crispness in the air still lends us vigor and we want to get out and hike the hills.  Our leaves won't be changing color too much, but green is my favorite color.

I can't tell you how grateful I am for the breezes blowing in through the windows and for the sight of swaying trees again.  Even now I feel a cool wind coming in through the screen door, and enthusiasm and energy come riding in with it.  I'm back and glad to be here.

Saturday scenes

Last evening we went for a quick swim.  The girls have been sick, so it's been slow around here.  Mary is on the mend and so glad to get back in the water.

 This crazy dog was tearing up the sand.  She made friends with Siwa.  I saw them sitting side by side at the water's edge.

Hope rising

Sometimes things combine to weigh a body down, and that's where I was, heavy.  

This morning I got up early, after a good night's rest. 

 I read my scriptures and prayed, 

and then I caught part of the sunrise.
While down at the beach I saw the son of some friends of ours.
I hadn't seen him in a very long time.  He was there watching the sun rise, too.
 We had a nice talk and even though I don't know him very well, I was really glad to see him.
I felt such a fondness for him and was so uplifted by our short conversation.  
You never know who will brighten your day, or whose day you yourself may make.
 God often answers prayers through others.

 I can feel hope rising. . .

It's going to be a good one.

Siwa took this one from the rooftops on another morning.
It feels like hope to me.

note: 

I wrote these words on a different day, but didn't send them earlier because it was time for our nature sightings post.

Out and about by Siwa

Some scenes from here and there:

A banana stalk fly (Telostylinus lineolatus) perched on the thorns of a tree at  the Ho'omaluhia Botanical Garden.

A sunset swim.

Lau Pele also known as Edible Hibiscus (Abelmoschus manihot) is a vegetable common on many of the Pacific Islands.  

Red Tilapia in the lake at Ho'omaluhia botanical garden. These fish are so used to people feeding them that they come right to the shore where the water is only a few inches deep.

A note from Diana:

With very few exceptions, every picture on this blog was taken by Siwa.  I want to thank her for tirelessly recording  the world through our family's eyes, and more particularly through her own.  Even though she is no longer a child, she hasn't lost the ability to see life with wonder and appreciation for the smallest of details.  It's as if she goes through life carrying a magnifying glass.  I so admire that in her.  Thanks Siwa for magnifying the world for the rest of us through your lens.

Focusing on the light

Lately I've been thinking about how my life, according to this blog, might look to some.  To some it might seem like I live in a fairyland.  I have a roof over my head, food on the table, clothes on my back and am surrounded by beauty everyday; I have loving friends and family and I live with the assurance that God is involved in my life.  I'm not delusional or in denial. I know my life is not perfect, but I choose not to write detailed descriptions of messy rooms or focus on anxious, stressful or sad days, for the very fact that we all have those days. It's just a given, part of the earthly equation. Stressing these moments is not helpful to me, no matter how "real" or "authentic" they may make me seem to my readers.

This blog has always been about happiness, and hope- for me and for anyone else who may be reading. I choose to focus on the good and beautiful and lovely, not because that's all there is in my life, but because it draws happiness to me.  I have good days and bad days, but overall I am happy.  I am happy ( I wanted to say that again because I like to say it) because I choose to be.  I choose happiness by including the things that bring happiness into my life- like God and family.  Another thing that brings a whole lot of joy to me is gratitude- savoring the gifts of life, noticing them and relishing them. 

Today I was driving home and slowed to let a little old lady cross the street.  The oncoming traffic had already stopped and formed a line of about four or five cars, headed by a woman in a black truck.  The little lady was wearing a pink muumuu and was slowly pulling a wagon with two potted plants in it.  To show her appreciation to the woman in the black truck for stopping for her, she was smiling and waving to  her the entire time that she plodded across the road.  She never dropped her waving arm once.  The woman in the truck was beaming at her, and I couldn't help but smile, too.  When the lady finally made it across and traffic resumed, the woman in the truck and I passed each other.  For one split second our heads turned and our eyes met, and we beamed at one another, too.  This whole moment took about one minute, and I could easily have forgotten it.  Instead I chose to notice it and savor it, not to let it go, but to hold it cupped in my memory like a precious find.

Happiness can be contagious, if you let it be. I hope my words will never be a source of discouragement to any one of you, or that they never create unrealistic expectations because I choose to focus on the positive.  You can be sure the hard times are there, but I'm going to continue to look to the light, because I rather like being happy.  I hope you do too, and if you do, keep reading, because happiness is contagious you know.