Day 3: High and Low by Sam Schellenberg

 

The journey we embarked on as a group had many highs and lows. Physically we started at the top of a caldera covered with lush green ferns, Māmane (Sophora chrysophylla) trees, and the Ahinahina. As we hiked on, we got to our first big clearing. The vast caldera was two hundred feet below us, like nothing I had seen before. From afar, the people walking down there looked like tiny ants slowly crawling along the black rock.

We reached our low point at the bottom of the caldera a mile or two later. Our guide, Judy, told us how different rocks were formed based on the distance from the explosion. She also had us go on a little scavenger hunt to look for Pele's hair. We had to look for a fragile piece of glass that looked like hair. I could see the sun reflecting off a stranded glass in a tiny crevice of the rock. I bent down and picked up the hair, trying not to break it. We then moved deeper into the caldera, and suddenly, I saw bushes. I thought, how could bushes grow in such a desolate place? Our tour guide must have read my mind because she then explained that because of the lichen in the rocks and a very lucky seed was blown into that same crack, the lichen would supply the nutrients for that seed to grow. She then said these bushes were only found in this specific caldera and are very important to the Hawaiian natives. She told us we could try one of the berries on the bushes, but we had to honor it by saying a Hawaiian prayer. Even though the berry was not a world delicacy, I could taste the fruit's history and meaning. 

After walking further, we then stopped for lunch. After eating, it was time for reflection. At this point, I was at an emotional high. We had been hiking in such a beautiful area, and I saw and tried many new things. We then had to write an I am poem. Which consisted of adjectives and other words describing who you are. Before writing, I took deep breaths to try and center myself and be in the moment. Off of my emotional high, I felt one and centered. Writing this poem allowed for much self-reflection about who I am. That was a question that I had never really asked myself before, and it was refreshing and eye-opening. 

Then as we climbed out of the caldera, it started to rain, and for me, in the beginning, it was miserable. I decided to be positive and fully embraced the rain, took my shirt off, and got soaked, but I felt refreshed and, in a way, a new person. 

This day was filled with many physical and emotional highs and lows and has given me time to reflect on myself and become a new person.