Sunrise, sunset

Here is the challenge: Which is which?? (hint, this is looking across the channel from Ka'anapali toward Lanai--answer at the end)

This is our last full day on the island. It has been a great vacation for me, not so much for Dad.

I am reading a book that I can only stand for a couple of chapters at a time. It was recommended to me by a lady at the Lahaina B&N, with the caveat that the locals swore by it and at it depending on their particular heritage. The book is The Last Aloha by Gaellen Quinn. Although it is historical fiction, it is much like Hawaii by Michener in recounting a very real piece of history not taught in school. (For those who smile, this one does NOT begin with the creation!)

Poor Dad has had to endure my frustration and outrage with the book. I have slammed it down and cried in anger at the story as it is depicted. I vow not to pick it up again, but the author writes so well and the story is compelling. I set it aside and read something else for a while. (I have finished Kate Jacobs' Knit the Season as fluff to decompress with, and I go to the Kindle for The Centurion's Wife, so that is a good thing.) But I have to return.

I want to quote one of the reviews to preface my problem with the book (well, not so much the book itself as the events it recounts):

" Some of the best accounts of Hawaii's past have come not from scholars, but from fiction writers, able to build on the historical records with acts of insight and imagination that bring them closer to the probable truths. Quinn's novel of Queen Lili'uokalani, is as empathetic and accurate a reconstruction of the downfall of the Hawaiian monarchy as it may be possible to get. Hawaiian readers, who already know so much of the queen's story, will be moved to see it once again so inexorably unfold. Other readers will have much to learn." --Elinor Langer, The Nation, April 28, 2008.

As I read this book (and I will finish it), I find myself furious at the shameful way the second generation New England missionary families conducted their not-quite-bloodless-coup in the name of sugar and greed. The intrigue, lies, deception, and bare-faced arrogance of these "Christian" businessmen drive me right up the wall. I know (as Dad reminds me) this has been over and done with for more than 125 years, but I wonder if we are not capable of doing the same type of things again, even to our own country. We ought to seek lessons from past mistakes, but if we never learn of those mistakes, we can never learn from them.

You have read Farewell to Manzanar and Snow Falling on Cedars, but do you realize that I had never heard of Japanese relocation camps in all my years growing up through California schools? I did not know they existed until you studied about them in school. We are very good at hiding our faults from ourselves and our children; but eventually what we do not acknowledge, we are doomed to trip over.

Okay, I guess I better dial it back a little. Calm, peaceful dialogue is preferable to bombastic rhetoric, no matter who is doing the talking. If anyone else happens to read this thought-provoking book, I would love to chat about it.

(answer--sunset on left, sunrise on right, both beautiful every day!)

More vacation books

When I come to Hawaii, I read. That's pretty much it--sitting on the beach with a book, sloshing in the ocean, sitting on the beach with a book, cooling off in the pool, sitting on the beach with a book, listening to the pounding of the surf, sitting on the beach restoring my tan but always with a book.

Dad teases me, but he is an enabler, as all of you know. He feeds my passions with suggestions at the bookstores of "Do you have this one?" This year was especially bad because we stopped at a Border's "going out of business" sale a few hours before we even left! Our flight was scheduled to leave early Saturday morning, so, like always, we were spending the night before at an airport Marriott and leaving the car there for the trip. For this trip we were flying out of BWI, so we decided to leave early on Friday and go to the temple first. After a 1 pm session we went to PF Changs for dinner and took a walk around White Flint mall. There was the big, sad sign announcing the closing of that Borders. I couldn't pass up a BOOK SALE, now, could I? I mean, I don't have enough books already (can you ever have enough books? I think not!).

We shopped and got some real bargains, paid for them, said we were sorry they were closing, and continued to walk around. When we went to the second level, we discovered the Border's was a 2 story one!! Wow, that meant there will still more bargains to be had! So, after many more selections, I had to make decisions about what to add to my vacation pile, and where to stuff them in. I am so glad Dad is Global Services and gets 3 70-pound bags!!

I usually bring enough to finish 1 per day, but we ALWAYS make a stop at Borders (on Kauai) or Barnes and Noble (on Maui) to pick up anything else that strikes me. And we usually end up having to ship a box home because I have overloaded the suitcases. This trip is no exception.

To date, here is my additional completed list:

• Leann Sweeney, The Cat, the Quilt and the Corpse and The Cat, the Professor and the Poison--Both are entertaining mysteries with a main character who has three amazing cat children and makes cat quilts for a living.
• Kate Jacobs, Knit Two--Another knitting club friendship book. Okay, but not too exciting.
• Stefanie Pintoff, In the Shadow of Gotham--A first historical crime novel with a feel like Caleb Carr's Alienist set in New York at the turn of the century so forensics is still in its infancy.
• Bernard Cornwall, Stonehenge--Quite an epic totally imagining the ancient civilization that might have built the temple, (shrug) not as good as the Marion Zimmer Bradley construct of the Mists of Avalon series.

So far there is no pattern to the things I am reading, but my tan is looking great! (BTW Dad got back from Dubai on the 12th, but he has no idea what time zone he is in.)

I actually made it to 100--I think I surprised myself!!

I know that some of you hit 100 in your first year of blogging, and it has taken me almost 4 years. I also honor those of you who have over a thousand blogs, and books of blogs. You have inspired me and encouraged me and taught me. Our family is enriched by your creative history and testimonies. Thank you.

VOG--weird stuff

This is really strange stuff. It is called "vog" by the local weather people, and is a mixture of regular fog (the "marine layer" to politically correct San Franciscans) and volcanic ash. It appears whenever there is a southerly wind flow that comes up from the Big Island where Kilauea continues to erupt (think temple creation videos). Some days the ash content is really high, and visitors are often affected by respiratory irritation, Having grown up in the LA basin, we have lungs of steel (or at least well coated already) and nothing bothers us. This will last a couple of days, but no big deal to me.

Dad called this morning from Dubai. He left Friday night, flew to LA, sat for two hours, flew to Dulles, sat for five hours, flew 13 hours to Dubai, and landed at 7:30 pm Sunday. His internal clock is really scrambled. He is now 14 hours ahead of me. (I am 3 hours ahead of the West coast people and 6 hours ahead of the East coast group.) He planned to go to bed soon to be up for his two hour presentation on Monday afternoon. Then he turns around and flies back the same route Tuesday morning, arriving here Tuesday afternoon--Yes, you read that right. He arrives a short time after he left.

Yesterday we ended our first week here, so I switched rooms to the other half of the lockout. Even though this is the bedroom only half, it still has a small refrigerator, microwave, dishes, flatware, and a beautiful corner and covered lanai looking straight out at the beach. Very comfortable and pleasant.

Reading update:

• On Friday I finished Comfort Food by Kate Jacobs, author of The Friday Night Knitting Club series -- a nice, women friendship story, especially if you like cooking shows.

• On Saturday I read one of the best books! Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier, author of Girl With a Pearl Earring. I have not loved everything she has written, but this story is amazing. It is also based on real people with real historical impact, and I would recommend it to any one who has a passion about strong women from history. It is a great followup to Simon Winchester's The Map That Changed the World." It will be one of my all-time favorites!

Aloha.

Just another day in paradise

This is the view of the beautiful beach from my balcony.








This is a picture of where Dad is right now.

It is as it always is--we are on vacation, and Mars has decided he must be somewhere else. So, last night we drove up to the mall in Kahului so that he could find appropriate dress slacks for a presentation in Dubai on Monday. DUBAI IS 10,000 MILES AWAY!! He will leave Friday night on the red eye to LA, then on to Dulles, and from there to Dubai--not sure how many time zones that is but the tickets are over $11,000. He returns on Tuesday afternoon, and restarts his "vacation". Truth be told, of the 11 working days he is away, he will end up only claiming 2 as vacation. He already works every day for at least 8 hours tasting and on the computer. I shouldn't complain, I am having a great time! But I wish he could really let it go for a little while.

While he is gone, I will continue to enjoy the sun, beach, ocean sounds, and books. I have already finished several--two on the Kindle while I stomp along on the treadmill each morning, Heresy by S.J. Parris (very good medieval mystery) and Hoax by Clifford Irving about the fake autobiography of Howard Hughes (Really Good)--and four others.

• The Mysteries of Pittsburgh by Michael Chabon--I did not like this at all. It was a coming-of-age first novel by an author who got much better in his later books.
  
• Red Riding Hood a novel by Sarah Blakley-Cartwright based on the screenplay by David Johnson for the movie. --an interesting take on the fairytale, but Gregory Maguire (Wicked, et al) is much better at this genre.
  
• Death by Cashmere by Sally Goldenbaum--a fairly typical formula mystery revolving around a group of friends and a knitting store in a little town on the Massachusetts coast, sort of like Jessica Fletcher's hometown in Maine.
• The Union Quilters by Jennifer Chiaverini--this is the latest in the Elm Creek Quilts novels, and I really like this author and especially her historical stories. This involves the lives of women whose husbands went off to fight on the Union side in the Civil War and has many local places intertwined in the story, Gettysburg, Hanover, Harrisburg, as well as battles further afield. Nicely done.

I have nine more books to go, and a Barnes & Noble right up the street. My vacation will be fun regardless of how much Dad has to work.

For anyone who is keeping track, we return home on Sunday the 17th. Cells and emails are checked regularly. (Mine is 717-634-7533. Dad's will be on the other side of the earth, literally.)

Spring house (blog?) cleaning part 2

This is a shot of the Lahaina Roads, the channel between Ka'anapali Beach and the island of Lanai. It is here that whales come for their mid-winter vacation fun. They arrive in December and stay until April before leaving for their day jobs in Alaska.
Mothers and babies are around now. We saw a pair today, splashing, blowing, and tail flapping for about thirty minutes. Dad had gotten a pair of really great binoculars for Christmas a year ago, and we really enjoyed watching their antics. My camera was not designed for pictures at that distance, so we have none to share. But we do know they are here, and we are already looking forward to next January when we return for two weeks again.

We arrived on Saturday and missed conference that day. We passed the Lahaina chapel and saw the cars there at 3:30--that was during Priesthood session. First session began at 6 am.

As I listened to talks on line, I was reminded of one that I had begun to write about a couple of years ago that seems just as relevant today. We actually used this talk in November of last year as the theme of our VT conference at the request of our Bishop. Clearly it is a topic that frequently bears repeating.

(Originally intended for posting on October 18, 2008.)

Today in Sacrament meeting, one of our newest sisters in the ward spoke on President Eyring's Sunday morning talk "Our Hearts Knit As One" (lds.org/conference). It broke my heart to go back and reread the message he taught so quietly, especially the sections after he quoted Mosiah 18:17, 19-22.

Unity and forgiveness have been on my mind for a while now. I have struggled with how to answer the question that comes up frequently, "Why do people within the same family, the same ward, good friends, or neighbors, have such different opinions while sharing the same core values." Perhaps the best explanation is that we each have the right and obligation to seek answers in prayer. And since the form of prayer is taught, "...study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right..." (Doc. & Cov. 9:8), that is what we each must do.

If we get different answers, maybe the real lesson is that it doesn't matter. The Lord's plan will not be thwarted by our efforts. Delayed, perhaps, but never overcome. What matters is that we went through the process with faith, believing our prayers would be answered; and we would be expected to act on them to fulfill our own responsibilities. I love the gospel with its blessing of agency and progression as we learn to live as Christ taught--with love and faith.

(Back to now.)

The gospel is still true. I have learned so much about dealing with people trying to put their own spin on principles to justify their choices. Ultimately, whether the lesson is on forgiveness and an RS sister announces she believes it is true but she will NEVER forgive the one who offended her 5 years ago, and, by the way, "don't ask me to be a VT or bring food to an event if that family is attending," or the talk deals with Word of Wisdom and someone says "how can Sister _ be a temple worker if she drinks green tea," it does not change my testimony. I do not presume to know all the answers, and I admit to having to get better at not criticizing or gossiping about others' choices. I know that only the Bishop is charged with being a judge of others. The rest of us have enough to do to judge ourselves by the standards we know to be true and make sure we are working to do things right.

I love all of you so much, and I have faith in your efforts to live what you know is true.

Spring house (blog?) cleaning part 1

(Note to all: the title of this will be made clearer after a brief inrtoduction.)

This was the view of my deck on Friday, April 1, 2011. I already had potatoes and peas ready to go in the garden after a string of nice spring days !!

Thanks, Mother Nature, for the April Fool's joke!

This was the view from the lanai on Saturday, April 2.

Who's laughing now??

Yes, we have gone from snow to sunshine in less than 24 hours! We are here on Maui for the next two weeks. One of the things I will be doing is reconnecting with everyone through my renewed blog. That way I will only tell stories once and not confuse (or bore) anyone by repetition.

When I began looking back at my blogging history (hence the "spring blog cleaning" title), I discovered a couple of blog drafts that I never got around to posting, so I am going to start there and finish them before catching up and moving on.

The following entry was begun on November 5, 2007, and was originally titled "FORTY YEARS AND COUNTING..."

I was thinking about bearing my testimony yesterday, but the time was well taken by those who were most touched by the two funerals. What I was feeling did not seem appropriate, but I did want to share it with my family. It was on November 4, 1967, that I was baptized and confirmed by my fiancee. We had been engaged only 3 weeks when the stake baptismal service was held. I was the only one over the age of 8 being baptized, so I was the only one confirmed that night. The blessing Ed gave me was to be a very important thing that I only understood after several years.

In the blessing, he said there would come a time when my family would rely on me to keep them together. I want to be sure that all of you know that blessing was fulfilled in July of 1971 when Dad had his industrial accident at Proctor & Gamble. Some of you may not know or may have forgotten the details of that event, but it is important that the record not be lost.

Dad was the supervisor of the production line for the new plant that was to make Pringles for the first time. He was working rotating shifts, two weeks on each, as the plant was under construction. We had lived in Jackson TN for just over a year. Eddie was 20 months old, and I was pregnant with Billy. That particular week Dad had begun graveyard shift, and as the YW President, I was babysitting the children of our Camp Director Ouida Williams while she went to camp. Her husband Tommy worked for Dad on graveyard, and was also a counselor in the Branch Presidency. At about 2 AM there was a terrific pounding on the backdoor, and I went down to find Tommy and President Etheridge on the porch. They explained that there had been an accident involving Dad at the plant. Tommy had been there, went in the ambulance with Dad, and had called James who met them at the hospital where they administered to Dad. They then came straight to our house so that Tommy could stay with Eddie and his own children while President Etheridge took me to the hospital.

Once we got there, I only had a few minutes with my precious husband before they put him in an ambulance to go to the Baptist Hospital in Memphis 80 miles away. I was not allowed to go with him, but that was a good thing, as it turned out. James took me out to the plant to get our little VW and followed me to the gas station and filled the car for me. I drove off into the night on Interstate 40 toward a frightening and uncertain future.

All through that trip thoughts kept swirling through my head--the Jackson doctor had said Ed was going to lose his hand, what was I going to do about Eddie, what was going to happen with my new job at the college, how long would Ed be hospitalized, how would we manage without his income, how and where would we have to move, and more that I can't remember--but there was darkness and fear all around me. Then a warm light flooded my mind and I heard myself say, "I can do this." I was reminded that I had received the blessing to hold my family together, and this was when I would do it. As I was driving alone to the hospital in Memphis, the peace and comfort from that promise made by my sweetheart at my confirmation kept me calm and stable.

I walked into the Emergency area, told the nurse who I was, and they immediately put me in a wheelchair and took my vitals. I guess I looked pretty scary, and they thought they were dealing with a pregnancy emergency. We straightened that out, and they took me to Ed's room. He was in the bed, still in his work whites, and looking as pale as the sheets. I remember how shocked I was by the way his hand looked propped up on top of several pillows, all lumpy and bloated out with floppy fingers--until I recognized I was looking at a latex glove filled with ice that was packed around and taped to a bandaged arm. Things got better after that.

He was crying and apologizing for being careless and destroying our future plans. I was calm and reassuring because I still carried the peaceful spirit from the blessing. The orthopedic specialist walked in overhearing his fears and immediately said, "You are not going to lose that hand. That's why I am here." They whisked him off to surgery, and the blessings continued.

After hours of surgery Ed was back with his hand cleaned up and repairs begun. By the end of that day I had learned that P&G had searched for the top hand specialist on the East coast, and this doctor was one of the two they found. We could not have been in a better place. At every stage after that from having Eddie cared for during the entire month I stayed on a couch in Ed's hospital room, through the skin grafts and the recovery and the further reconstructive surgeries and the gradual return to work, and the lemon of a VW bus, and the birth of Billy, and all of the other stuff that had to happen, through it all my blessing sustained me.

I know without any doubt that the confirmation blessing I had been given was inspired and has been fulfilled. I am so grateful for a husband who has always lived worthy to receive and pronounce blessings through his priesthood. I love him with all my heart.