Island Visitors

Oh guys. I don’t even know where to start.  I’ve obviously not done a great job of keeping this little corner of the internet updated.  Sometimes I feel like our day-to-day goings on are not noteworthy or worth writing home about – literally. Work, laundry, dishes, reading on the beach – you know, just your average day-to-day stuff – not super interesting to read (or write!) about.  That aside, this past week was more than certainly worth writing home about.  And so…. 

Dear Home, please pardon my cellphone photos - we were having way too much fun to pull out the big guns.

This last week, three of my favorite people visited us.  We hiked, ate some incredible food, boogie-boarded, ate more great food, toured Pearl Harbor, talked, ate some awesome food, hiked, talked, wore sweet hats, talked, talked…. It was divine.  Truly.  My theology may be off here, but I always feel like I taste a bit of heaven when my family is near.

The days flew by in a blur and it was over all too soon.  We kayaked up a river and saw turtles.  We ate KILLER tacos. We got sunburned. We hiked Diamond Head.  We had a sunset picnic at one of our favorite beaches. Mom and Dad wanted to get away from us for a few hours make sure that Kelly and I got some good ‘sister time’ in, so they took Tuesday for a cycling day while Kell and I did Pearl Harbor and lunch (and coffee and scones).  This week was totally not food-centric.  We loved showing our family the little parts of the island that we've discovered and, quite possibly, fallen in love with.

The Fourth was spent poolside relaxing.  Steaks on the grill and pina coladas in hand, we celebrated the beautiful, hard-fought gift of independence and prayed for God’s mercy on our country’s future.  From the backyard (of the house we were housesitting), we could see the beach fireworks; and we ended the night with our feet in the hot tub talking about theology, the future, and light matter like that.

It was pretty lousy saying goodbye to them.  We had an incredible time learning the beauties of combining mango and cilantro, pairing a great Sokol Blosser with mahi-mahi, and toasting to a wonderful week as the sun set over Waikiki.  Guys, seriously, words cannot even begin to explain how great this week was.  My family is pretty much the bestest. And I'm still trying to figure out how to convince them to come back.

This is Not My Home

Living in Hawaii during this temporary season has been quite interesting and quite the adventure.  We have loved learning a new place, but we live very differently here than we did back home.  When we moved here, we brought very little with us; and, as I do things like grocery shop, I typically buy just what we need for the week so that we will not have extra food items leftover when we leave.  In other words, we really don’t stock up on many things because we know our season here is short. 

A lot of the time, we stick out like a sore thumb.  It is very evident to most people here that we are not ‘local.’  Between our skin color (and its propensity to sunburn) and our inability to pronounce the Hawaiian street names, it’s quite clear that we’re not from around here.

Even after being here for a month, it still does not quite feel like home.  Oftentimes, I catch myself thinking about my family “back home,” wondering what the weather is like, thinking about our new nephews, longing for the fellowship of our church family…  Our living situation here is great – ideal, in fact; but most days I find myself dreaming about our future house where we will live when we are finally settled, done with this transitory year.  I picture it filled with guests for a dinner party; or I imagine what the garden might look like in the late spring. Some days it is difficult to be fully present here while my heart is longing for there.

While I was reading this morning, it occurred to me that this is precisely how I should feel about life on Earth.  I should feel like a temporary citizen, like I don’t quite belong.  Just because I live in Hawaii right now, does not give me Hawaiian residency. My driver's license still says, "Oregon."  I do not walk through the door of our apartment and feel enveloped by that familiar comforting sense of home.  It's great, don't get me wrong, but it's not home.

I want to long for our future Glory the way I long to be home now.  I know my heart, and my heart is desperately tied to the things of this world. I find great comfort in familiarity and great security in what I can see. I want to gain a more eternal perspective of our time here on Earth.  What a blessing to spend this temporary season in such a beautiful place, but what greater Beauty awaits!  Hold on, heart, we're not Home yet.

"But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself." - Phil. 3:20-21 

Wave After Wave

This morning, we awoke to gray skies and threatening, dark clouds.  Today has been a day of slate-wiping, dust-clearing, blustery, totally cleansing rain.  And it's only 8am.  After days of hot, humid weather, this rainstorm is complete relief.  I always drink my coffee hot, but it's nice to actually want it hot on a morning like this.  Even in this cleansing rainstorm, this place maintains its own unique sense of beauty.  But, enough about today.  Yesterday is the real reason we're all here.

Yesterday was pretty incredible.  Not because of the weather and not because of the beaches.... but because we had the joy of becoming an aunt and uncle for the second and third time.  My incredible sister-in-law gave birth to our two handsome nephews bright and early yesterday morning.  Yes, we are loving it here in Hawaii, but I can honestly say, I've never wanted to be back in Washington more than I do right now.

So, after living on my phone watching for updated information and pictures of the boys, I figured it was time to do something productive with my day. (Not that following your nephews' births is not productive, I had just barely left our apartment all day)  So, I decided to put together a little picnic for Cole and drive him up to the North Shore after work for a surprise sunset dinner.  It was worth the drive.

After we'd finished eating, we just sat there watching the *huge* waves roll in.  I really don't know what it is, but waves can be so mesmerizing.  There were a few kids playing in the surf a bit down the beach and the waves were so strong that, even if they had wanted to resist, the kids were continually bowled over by the power of the waves.  Driving, overwhelming waves.  

And, all I could think about was God's grace.  Wave upon wave of driving, overwhelming, completely undeserved Grace.  Two brand, new, healthy lives back home.  Grace.  A safe delivery.  Grace.  Living in this beautiful place. Grace. A great local church. Grace. Nearly 3 years of marriage to this incredible, forgiving, loving man.  Grace.  The cleansing morning rain. Grace.  Bowling me over day after day after day.

5 Things

The View atop Diamond Head

1. It's incredible how a slight change in climate can affect so many things. My hair, for example, though hard to control in this humidity, has never been happier.  And, one thing that I've learned in the two weeks that we've been here thus far is that, given this humidity, food turns stale far more quickly.  Tortilla chips were chewy in a matter of hours; and the Oreos went soft overnight.  I guess that means we have to eat them faster.  Darn.  

2. I've learned that if you do not speak any English whatsoever and cannot understand the sign that says, "Cash Only," and all you have is your credit card and the attendant is irritated with you, my husband will step in without a second thought and pay for your entire family's admission.

3. Given the limited time that we are here and the *extremely limited* size of my kitchen, keeping dinner healthy, fresh, and creative has become a challenge.  Not wanting to load the shelves of our temporary home with seasonings and spices that will not be used up during our three month stint (and not wanting to take any home or have too much go to waste), we have learned to appreciate the beauty in the simplicity of a little salt, pepper, and garlic.

4. If you ever need motivation to workout, spend a day at the beach.  

5. It has been so refreshing to have our evenings back, now that Cole is done with the "schooling" part of school.  Perhaps life on the island is getting to me, but it has been so nice to slow down a bit. Easily, the highlight of my day is our nightly dinner that we linger over on our back porch overlooking the harbor.  I really like this guy.

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