FROM HAIKU, MAUI (HAWAII)

Fourth of July Parade, Festivities

"Heliconia revolution," spotted deer, beautiful sunset on Kanaha Beach

HAIKU, Maui, July 5 - As befits this time of the year when America celebrates 234th anniversary of its revolution, the week started with an explosion - of colors, right here at the Rainbow Shower. Take a look...

While Elizabeth attended an oil painting class at the Hui Art Center, I worked in the gulch and then created some art of my own.  Check out the arrangements of the Heliconia and Bird of Paradise flowers I brought with me from the gulch.  So now are lanai and the kitchen have an explosion of colors that helped mark a festive week.

On Friday evening, just before sunset, Elizabeth and I went for a walk through the Lower Rainbow Shower and the gulch.  When we were at the farthest southern point of the Royal Palm Trail, we heard a sudden rustling sound and then beating of hooves against the ground.

"A horse?" was the first thought that crossed my mind.  "It can't be," common sense and reason replied.  This is the densest part of the jungle on a steep slope of probably close to 45-degrees.

And then we saw it.  Quick as a flash, a large spotted deer flashed before our eye.  He/she must have been about 3-ft high, and 6-7 ft long.  He darted down the hill from south to north and disappeared in the thick jungle in a blink of an eye.

I did not have the camera with me, but even if I did, it would not have done me any good.  Everything happened so fast.  So the above are some sample photos of the Maui deer taken higher up the Haleakala volcano slopes. These deer are called Axis Deer, or Chital or Cheetal.  Elizabeth said she was so frightened by it that she thought it was a Cheetah.

Well, later on, when we talked to some of our neighbors, we found out that the deer are quite rare in this area.  None of them have ever seen one "live" in this neighborhood. Since nothing in life is a "coincidence," I researched the spiritual symbolism of deer in order to try to understand the message and the meaning of his sudden appearance.  Here's what I found:

Well, the arts, poetry, music, healing... no wonder the deer sought its home at the Rainbow Shower. The spirit of Mozart led me here and the deer followed (see Winning the "Blackjack Mozart" Property, Jan-Feb 2009). 

As for a deer "leading the troops of fairies through the forest" like rays of sunshine cutting a swath through the trees (according to Celtic mythology), that's exactly what I felt had happened on St. Patrick's Day here (see St. Patrick's Day: 40th Irish-American Birthday, Mar 17).

The Cry of the Deer Poem

Right after publishing the foregoing story about the deer that suddenly appeared from out of nowhere at the Rainbow Shower, I got this poem from my Irish-American friend in Chicago, J. Peter Maher.  Here's an excerpt (click here to see the full version at original site):

Beautiful Sunset on Kanaha Beach: Message from Universe

Fast-forwarding to our Fourth of July beach barbecue last night, which we spent with some of our neighbors at the Kanaha Beach in Kahului, that's exactly what we saw at sunset. 

As windows to the universe opened up through the dark clouds over the West Maui mountains, rays of sunshine poured in through them, cutting swaths of light through the mountains at the ocean.  It was an ethereal scene and an unmistakable message from the spirit world:

"Through dark clouds and over the mountains and oceans, we will guide you to light." 

My eyes teared up then as they are now.  For, one of the messages that I send to the Creator and the spirits several times every day is: "I reaffirm my intention not to stray from Your path of enlightenment as You illuminate it for me." 

So they were replying.  I was getting my answer.  And on such a momentous occasions, too - the Fourth of July sunset. 

But I did not say anything about that to Elizabeth or to other people.  It was a private message meant only for those who "speak" the language of the universe. 

"What a beautiful sunset!" is all I said out loud before taking these pictures.

Earlier in the day, I took the above pictures on the Rainbow Shower lanai while Elizabeth attended another art class at the Hui.  It was a picture-perfect Fourth of July for any outdoor activities.  I spent most of the day clearing some some brush in the last remaining bit of tangled jungle in the northwest corner of the Rainbow Shower.  I figured the American Revolutionaries probably weren't partying all day today, so why not do some hard work to honor them.  But the main reason for it was so we can see and pick the Lilikoi (Passion Fruit) when it drops from the high branches.  I also brought home about two dozen of the Passion Fruit that had already fallen.  Elizabeth will now transform them into some sort of a Lilikoi delicacy - syrup, jam or juice.  Yum!

Makawao Parade

The day before (Saturday), we went to the traditional Makawao Fourth of July Parade.  Misty clouds and occasional showers blessed the parade participants from time to time.  But there was also enough sunshine that nobody minded getting wet a little.

As we found out last year, Upcountry Maui and the Big Island is really cowboy country.  So horses figured prominently in the parade, as did that big Texas longhorn with a horn span of 95 inches! (two right shots).

Some of the floats had ancient caterpillar-style farm tractors (left).  The youngest horseback rider (on a full-size horse) was a little Hawaiian kid only two years old!

But the most spectacular show was put on by the Tea Party "float."  It was a 1959 Caddy that spewed out fired out of its exhaust pipes... literally, as you can see in the above pictures taken by Brett Glass, the Maui party leader, who unwittingly caught even Elizabeth and I in the left shot (though no one else except Elizabeth and I would have known that, so small are the figures).

Stockholm Piano Stairs: Honey over Vinegar

Finally, we will take you to the country of Sweden, and its capital Stockholm, for the most inspiring message this Fourth of July.  You know what they say, "you can attract more bees with honey than with vinegar."  Well, in our over-regulated society, we seem to have forgotten about honey, and are using tough laws and strict rules to enforce what we consider civilized behavior.  And what's a result?  Unhappiness and obesity.  Check out this excerpt from "Down to Earth," a health and nutrition organization:

So if education about the negative effects of obesity and the guilt trips that the skinny models on magazine covers are supposed to create aren't effective, what should we do?  Well, maybe we should take a page from Stockholm's playbook, and use honey, rather than vinegar, to change people's behavior. Check it out:

   (Source: Rolighetsteorin.se)

Some Swedes believe that the easiest way to change people's behavior for the better is by making it fun to do. They call it The fun theory: www.thefuntheory.com . If you like this message and know of some people who would benefit from it, forward this link to them: Piano stairs .

Hope you had a wonderful Fourth. 

Money Can't Buy You Love Nor Happiness: World 's Richest Country Only 12th (Gallup)

HAIKU, Maui, July 6 - It's an old adage that "money can't buy you love."  Nor happiness.  The latest Gallup world survey shows that is true on a global scale, too. 

The United States may still be the richest nation on Earth, but its people are not as happy as Denmark or Finland.  Or those in 11 other countries around the world.  Looking at data collected across 132 countries, the Gallup Organization based their marks on representative samples of more than 136,000 people in each country. Respondents were asked how they would rate their lives on a scale from zero (worst possible) to 10 (best possible), as well as answering a series of questions on positive or negative emotions.

World’s Happiest Countries: Gallup Survey (PHOTOS)

1. 1. Denmark
2. 2. Finland
3. 3. Norway
4. 4. The Netherlands
5. 5. Costa Rica
6. 6. Canada
7. 7. Switzerland
8. 8. New Zealand
9. 9. Sweden
10. 10. Austria
11. 11. Australia
12. 12. United States
13. 13. Belgium
14. 14. Brazil
15. 15. Panama

 For a full Gallup report, see the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (July 2010).

And now, as a special treat, here are two more sunset images recorded this evening from our lanai. As you can see, the depict another window to the universe that opened up for a while in the west.

And that's all she wrote from the Rainbow Shower so far in July.

CLICK HERE to go to Hawaii 2010 TOC  or to Hawaii 2009 TOC

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