Drove Zach to school this morning so that Ker and I can keep the car for later, and I loved every moment of the drive. Wind, rain, and all. Lately my Honda Accord EX helps. Driving that car is a thing of beauty unto itself.
But it’s more than that.
One of the most wonderful things about the Big Island is that it has given me an appreciation for nature that I never had before. I’ve been blessed: in my life I’ve done an awful lot of traveling, and I’ve seen many beautiful, stunning vistas, but there is a different mana here, that spiritual power within the land that is unseen, untouched, but absolutely and undeniably real. And there are so many times, mostly when I’m driving alone, that I could swear that mana is creeping up the tires, seeping into the cracks of the doors and vents, and filling the car to reach me.
It’s a good thing, a great thing.
And this was one of those mornings.
Over the past 15 years time, I’ve easily done the trek up to Waimea and back well over a thousand times, and it never gets boring. It just can’t be when you’re cradled between Kohala, Mauna Kea, Hualalai, and the ocean with less than a handful of buildings to scar your view along the way. There’s this peace and bliss that invades you and comforts you. With so much seemingly uncharted territory as your landscape, your mind takes you to new places. Every single time.
As cliché as it may sound, you’re thankful that you’re alive, pure and simple. I get filled with this feeling of Mahalo, of thankfulness, that I’m here.
We’re keeping the car because we’ll take the 100 mile drive from Waikōloa to Pahala this afternoon to see Zach’s game with Ka‘u. 100 miles and back along West Hawai‘i’s extraordinary coastline for a football game. Over in the light, back in the dark, same mana in the car. I know it.
It’s going to be a Mahalo Day.
Wherever the rest of you are right now, I hope you have one too.
Rosa