Jack, The Tsunami, and SUP

It's been quite a while since I've made a post, so I'm sorry. But this weekend was way, way, way too epic not to write about.

A couple of months ago, I decided that I wanted to get a Stand Up Paddle Board. To be honest, I got tired of people always asking me if I surfed and me always saying I didn't. And then them asking me why not. And then me saying that I didn't have the time to learn. And then them saying that I should take some lessons. And then me saying I'd think about it. And then them saying that that would be a good idea. And then me saying thank you. You get the picture. Same conversation all the time. The truth is, I never really had the desire to be out on the waves, elbow to elbow with a bunch of people, trying to ride a wave on a surfboard. I love boogie boarding- always have and always will, mainly because it's so simple. Getting good at surfing would be awesome, but it would take a lot of time and effort that I just didn't want to invest.

But I still wanted a way to get out on the ocean and be more in touch with the Kai. Stand up paddling looked so peaceful. You could lose yourself in the ocean. I didn't even have to try it- I knew it was for me. So I started shopping around for boards, and last Wednesday, I went down into town to just check one out. I'm not all too sure how it happened, but two hours later, I was driving back up to the North Shore with a new 10 and a half foot board strapped to the top of my car.

It's shiny. It's wood. It's beautiful. It's bigger than a basketball hoop. It cleared out my bank account. When I put it on top of my car, it turns a lot of heads. It floats really well. I love it.

On Friday after school, I had high hopes of taking it out for the first time, but we had our last basketball practice of the year. Coach Ai and I played full court with the kids, and it was a blast. I think I went for a triple double in my slippers. But they were still talking smack. When will they learn? After that I rushed up to the North Shore, because Paula Fuga was playing a fundraiser at Waimea Valley, and rumor had it that Jack Johnson was going to come on and play a short set.

Sure enough, he came out and played Country Road and a couple others. Only on the North Shore could you be out under the stars, 20 feet away from Jack Johnson, listening to Better Together. When we got home, we grilled a few more hot dogs and had a bonfire underneath a full moon. I thought it was just about the perfect night, until I started getting texts and calls from people in the middle of the night...

Turns out that a huge earthquake in Chile had sent some large waves pulsing towards our sleeping island. I read an email from University of Hawaii saying there had been a tsunami warning issued, but those weren't too uncommon, so I didn't think much of it until I started getting the calls and texts.

Kyle woke up at 4:30 with a call from his mom asking him if he knew. By now, the news was that they were going to sound the sirens at 6 a.m. We would still have five hours to get what we needed and evacuate, as the tsunami wasn't scheduled to hit Hawaii until around 11. I tried to go back to sleep. I figured it would be cool to wake up to the tsunami sirens. But we were all getting texts and calls. Maile incesantly told me to come up the hill to their house in Makakilo to be safe, and to leave early to beat traffic. I figured she had a point there, as I envisioned traffic jams like in Independence Day and Deep Impact. So by six I had a bag of clothing, important documents, and my computer packed. I strapped my new board on top of the car. It was the first time I had done it without help, so I was pretty nervous, and the tsunami sirens in the distance added to the duress. I got everything packed in, said goodbye to The JungleHouse, and was on the road by 7:30.

There was less traffic than ever before, and I got there quickly, though I was nervous the entire time that my board was going to fall off. Turns out it was fine, but the bag flapped around in the wind, making it look like the board was moving. It's going to take a long time for me to be able to drive relaxed when that thing's on top of my car.

When I got to their house, there were still about three hours until the tsunami was scheduled to arrive, so we ate breakfast, watched the news, watched a movie, slept, etc. in anticipation of the disaster. It would hit the Big Island first, and then we'd have 30 minutes. I though I'd watch the news when it arrived in Hilo and then head outside and watch the ocean below to see it arrive here myself.

When the time finally arrived, nothing really happened. The whole time, I was hoping something would, but then I realized that if it did, I could say goodbye to my house and most of my things, not to mention all the people who were still on the coasts and couldn't get away. So really, the best case scenario was minimal effects, and that's exactly what happened. I was so tired that I fell asleep before we were completely out of harm's way. I slept for a few hours and woke up to a safe, dry world.

The next day, I decided that I would finally get out on my paddle board. I took it out to a bay in Waianae with Kathryn that was sheltered from waves thanks to a couple jetties. It was rainy and windy, but we decided that at this point, nothing was going to stop us. I took it out of the bag, walked it out to the water, and laid down on it. It floated just fine, and I paddled out to some open space. Carefully, I got to my knees and began paddling. Easy enough. Very slowly, I stood up. Still easy. I dug my paddle into the water, and I was off. It was just a little bit shaky at first, but I was standing up alright, and I felt like I was gliding through the water. Looking back at the pictures that Zielones took, I was a little bit awkward, bending my back too much and quivering my knees. But after a couple tries, I got pretty comfortable. You have to find your balance, embrace the rocking of the waves, and then just paddle. It's a surreal experience. Turtles swam underneath me as I cruised along, and the water slapping against the board played the prettiest song. I bet the when Jesus walked on water, he wished he had one paddle. I could've been out there all day, and I'd probably still be out there if I didn't have so much homework to do. Stand up paddling is definitely my thing, and I can't wait for all the experiences that this board will bring me.

And so it begins: my quest to be a true waterman.