Māuikiʻikiʻi o ke kauwela. Summer...Māui snatches and slows the sun, there on Haleakalā. Done, as many understand in one version, so his motherʻs kapa could dry.
Today sun reaches its northernmost limit, 23.5 degrees north of the Equator, at Ke Alanui Polohiwa a Kāne, the black glistening path of Kāne, then turns south as days shorten.
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| Asa Ellison |
The erosional depression at the summit region of Haleakalā is a wonder at any time of day. There, Iʻve especially appreciated the view of Maunakea on Mokuokeawe. Itʻs that bluish hump about 80 miles away, across the ʻAlenuihāhā on the right horizon.
Here, on the Island of Hawaiʻi, we stand at Kumukahi, easternmost land in Hawaiʻi Nei, to greet the first light of day.
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| mtomono on twitter |
A reward for getting up early. Up at Kaluapele, early risers are able to enjoy chill air, and pastels painting memorable scenes, especially if Pelehonuamea is visibly at work. Muted light allows us to better see pele reds, as well as surrounding scenery, in context. Methinks better than total darkness wondering where are we? Where was that? Too, landscape scale is better understood.
Youʻve likely heard that as of Monday, June 19, Pele is resting. Sheʻll return somewhere at some point. When Her recent episode began on June 7, a little vent on the wall above the floor of Halemaʻumaʻu seemed relatively insignificant. But, as happens, the situation evolved. That vent became more and more prominent, and was seemingly the primary source of pele, molten lava. Time/Date stamps are at upper left.
At some point, the side of the cone, built of welded spatter, but unstable, opened. As pele erupted at the top, She dazzlingly fell trickled cascaded to the bottom, feeding a pond on a portion of the loko ahi, the lava lake.
And then, as is Her wont, just after 4p on Monday, 19 June, She rested. The vent shown above is seen below, near the right edge of the screenshot. According to observer friends, the (a) best viewpoint on the rim of Kaluapele is at the left edge of the photo, about a mile and a half away. Scale can be very deceptive, especially these days, when so many have access to cameras with telephoto lenses. And fussing with Settings to enhance photos produces unrealistic views.
Speaking of Pele, this showed up in the Tribune Herald on Kamehameha Day, 11 June 2023:
Not being able to help myself, I submitted the following as a Letter to the Editor to vent frustrations, perplexments, and a degree of outrage:
Your Views for June 21
HTH cartoon questioned
I write regarding the cartoon by Mr. Gary Hoff, published Sunday (June 11) in the Tribune-Herald.
Of course, I have no idea what either Mr. Hoff or the Tribune-Herald intended with the cartoon. Was it tongue-in-cheek, playing off reactions of tourists? Or was it something else?
I find the piece profoundly insulting to practitioners of Native Hawaiian culture, and especially to those professing ancestral links to Pelehonuamea.
We’ve witnessed a renaissance of Native Hawaiian culture, beginning in the mid-1970s. Many hula kahiko presented at Merrie Monarch pay homage to Pele. Many of us view her as the creator of Hawaii nei. Without the elemental energy of Pele and her molten lava, we would not be here.
She does not put on shows for our entertainment. She does her work unbidden, as she has for untold millennia, regardless of what we think.
Increased attention to Native Hawaiian culture — “Malama Aina” and “Aloha Aina” and “pono conduct and practices,” etc. — all become trite phrases and fall by the wayside when depictions such as was published find their way into print.
Staff at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park strive to present culture accurately. Traditional place names have been revitalized. Others work to ensure that noise of commercial helicopter tours is greatly diminished and minimized, allowing park visitors to experience birdsong, the rustlings of olapa leaves, the exhalations of Pele, and the grinding and clattering of fresh lava during eruptions.
I can only trust that an error in judgement was the cause of this profane insensitivity, and look forward to your response.
Bobby Camara
Keaau
Itʻs challenging, when Media doesnʻt seem to "Get it". Their not "getting it" was the genesis of this blog, when I repeatedly read and viewed non-sense during the early stages of the 2018 Hulihia and Eruptive Events. The "something" I did turned out to be writing...
Shifting a bit... Iʻve sometimes tried to name the color of ʻiʻiwi. Red? Scarlet? Red-orange? Vermilion? Etc. Long-time friend Zoya suggested pyrrol scarlet:
And scarlet:
Factors of lighting, age and health of bird, state of viewers vision, etc., all influence perception. Scarlet works for me. And I know that ʻiʻiwi are definitely not the red of ʻapapane.
And then, gh was Outside Paying Attention near the Lua, when out of the corner of an eye he spied:
A beauty of a weed: A plant growing out of place. Likely planted in a Volcano garden, perhaps seeds eaten out of rose hips by birds then spread. Or not...
Below, that lighting (or lack of it) I mentioned earlier. Sunsetish on Monday after the dimly glowing primary vent at the right edge of screenshot shut down. Lava under the crust is insulated and remains hot a good while. Just under the surface, flow currents continue till they slow and stagnate (stop).
Then below, the black border at the right edge of the grey-crusted inactive pond is a "bathtub ring". Some molten material drained into the greater lake, and lava contracts a bit as it cools, leaving "rings".
And, of course we shall see what life holds for all of us.
Till whenever then, be well...
Aloha, always aloha,
BobbyC
maniniowali@gmail.com
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