Aloha ‘Oe Lahaina

[Islandboy]

Well, I’d say we’re all still a bit numb here, but life is slowly marching forward again. Thank you all for your kind words and for offering an ear in my last post honoring my classmate Albert Kituguchi, who was lost in the fire.

I’m sure you’re all seeing the images and the stats - 115 confirmed deaths, another 300+ still unaccounted for on an ominous list, and for about a 3 mile stretch of Honoapi’ilani Hwy, we will have an apocalyptic landscape to reckon with until the rebuilding starts, a process that will likely take several years to begin due to the immense damage to the infrastructure.

Within a week of the fire, the conspiracy theorists were having a field day on social media, claiming the origins of the fire were everything from directed energy beams from space, to an intentional act of a nefarious US government for the purpose of rebuilding a “smart city". I’m happy to report that we locals didn’t put up with their shit for very long at all, and they’ve mostly crawled back under the rocks they came from.

Now it’s the lawyers flocking here, a necessary group I suppose, for those who’ve lost everything and were underinsured.

As for me, I’m hitting it hard at work to keep my mind off the heavy things, getting stopped in my tracks every now and then to allow myself to grieve, not that I've had a choice in the matter. For most of my adult life now, whenever I’ve been forced to face adversity, I’ve taken pen to paper and jotted my thoughts and feelings down in the most creative way I can muster - not sure why, but it seems like a necessary step in my process these days. And of course this involves me laying my heart out on a table for all you lucky folks to see 

But before I share something with you, please join me in raising a glass tonight to Micheal Misaka - another classmate since 5th grade. He remains on the missing list, and his home was in the middle of it all. In all likelihood, there’s simply nothing left to be found. As grim as that sounds, it’s our reality here. RIP Mike.

And now I need to say Aloha ‘Oe (farewell to thee) to Lahaina, so that the rebuilding of whatever comes next can fully enter my thoughts.

[Glass Half Full]

Raising my glass.

[PigFish]

Cheers mate. Sorry about your losses. Carpe diem.

[B44]

My condolences, may he be in a better place. 

[JohnS]

Yes, Carpe Diem!

[Vetteman]

To your friend!

[Fireball]

Cheers bud!

[HuffnPuffff]

My sincere condolences to you and your community.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[El Presidente]

RIP Mike 

🍷

[MrBirdman]

Raising a glass tonight for Mike 🌹 - rest in peace. 

[GaryK 54]

Such beautiful words to capture the depth of your emotion and sense of loss. The open expression of deep emotions through writing can be so cathartic. Tonight, I will raise my glass to you and all those who have lost so much in Lahaina.