surf's up. waaaay up!

Last weekend was quite an exciting one for the state of Hawaii and the entire Pacific Rim. In case you haven't heard, there was a gigantic (magnitude 8.8) earthquake in Chile on Friday night, triggering tsunami warnings for anyone lucky enough to live on the Pacific Ocean.

Brooke, Kelsey, and I had taken to ferry to Maui Friday morning with the intention of coming back to Lanai on Saturday night. We wanted to use our time to "recharge" and explore more of Maui's sights and towns. So explore we did! We spent Friday journeying through "upcountry", which is Maui-speak for towns on the side of the volcano (Haleakala). We went to Makawao and marveled at the glassblowing studio operated by some local artists. The glass was exquisite, and I was tempted to buy several pieces. Unfortunately, glass doesn't hold up well in luggage, so I was content to watch in amazement as the artisans expertly and patiently shaped the molted glass into beautiful works of art.

We had heard from a few different people that there is a lavender farm upcountry that's too good to miss. It was about a 20-minute drive from Makawao, so we headed to the farm on limited directions. Once we got there, we looked around the gift shop, which was full of lavender products (everything from lavender shampoo to lavendar chocolate to lavender coffee!). The gift shop closed soon after we arrived, but the friendly ladies inside encouraged us to look around the grounds for as long as we wanted. With their blessing, we set off to enjoy the flowers and herbs planted all over the place. I never realized how many types of lavender exist, but I enjoyed pulling off a few leaves here and there as a sample.

After our lavender farm adventures, we set off to the mall to get a much-needed pedicure. And let me tell you--it was the best money I've spent on Maui yet. Thank goodness for pedicures. And that's all I'll say about that. We went to see a movie (Valentine's Day. Don't waste your money.) And headed for home. As we were leaving the theater, though, the radio in the car mentioned something about an earthquake in Chile and a possible tsunami. I wasn't too worried at that point. Nothing was official and I was tired, so I guess I couldn't process it at the time.

We were staying with a family that had connections to LBC. They are the sweetest couple! They are about my parents' ages and have three daughters about the same ages as Brooke, Kelsey, and I. We enjoyed chatting with them and were so appreciative of their hospitality. As I was laying in bed that night, I was listening to a stream that runs through their backyard, and I remember thinking how peaceful I felt. Ha. Well all that was about to change.

Kelsey and Brooke woke me up at 4:45am. Their family in Texas and Minnesota had been frantically calling and texting them since 3:30 with news of the tsunami warning spreading like wildfire. They told me, in the gentlest way possible, that they wanted to let me sleep but then they heard it would hit California too and they decided to wake me up. I'm so glad they did. I immediately got on the phone with my parents and both grandmothers, assuring them that I was safe on high ground. We went down to watch the news with the family we stayed with, because now the whole house was awake. The sirens started blaring at 6am, and we watched the news as experts predicted the worst and people on low ground frantically evacuated to higher areas.

It is the strangest feeling knowing something bad is coming and being absolutely powerless to do anything about it. We went for a walk and watched people driving up the road with their pets and their bedding and their photographs in their cars, and I wondered what it would be like to leave not knowing if you'd see your home again. But, again, we could do nothing but wait and watch. We had an amazing breakfast of french toast and sausage (which felt a little like our last meal), and walked uphill to a lookout point at 11am. With the first wave scheduled to hit Hilo at 11:05 and Maui at 11:20, we had no idea what to expect. I took this picture, thinking that I might have to refer to it as the "before" shot. I had the uncomfortable feeling of wanting to see something and praying hard that there was nothing to see at the same time. People were parked all over the road watching and wating as the first surge came in, bubbling into the harbor like a frothing monster. The surge went in and out quickly, alternately exposing the reef and rocks, and causing waves to break inside the breakwater.

After two hours of waiting with baited breath, we realized it was over. It was exhilarating to go back to the house realizing that no one was hurt and nothing was damaged. After much-needed naps and showers, we went out to dinner and resumed normal life. We came back on the 3:15 ferry on Sunday, thankful that there was even a harbor left for us to depart from.

Thanks so much to all who prayed for us and the people of these islands. God heard our pleas and answered in an amazing way!