Ho'omaluhia Gardens: An Old but Not Always Easy Friend

Rex and I chose the gardens for the Friday direeve.  We agreed to meet Don, Cheryl, Heather, and Vernon at about 12 noon, so we headed out at 6:00 AM to do a few loops up to the Pali before they arrived.   It is perfect for the round the island as it is largely hard road, with almost no trail, it has a lot of elevation change, and there are not a lot of cars.  The last item being the best part of the deal.  We did the ten mile loops in about three hours each, 1K+ ups and downs for about 4k+ elevation change in 20 miles.  The Garden is a lot of ups and downs along the ridge lines so it is likely we did about 5K in the 25 miles we did all toll.

Direeves are not about taking measurements but when you start out at the  gate and come around the first turn you can look far off into the distance, and there, high up on the cliff side is your goal.  Its like getting slapped in the face, and the sting just never quite goes away.  Getting up and back just feels good when you look back and can say, 'Yeah, I did that pretty well."



Speaking of measurements,  Rex and I were hoofing up a few of the hills, pushing but not running and I glanced down at my Garmin to see that we were clocking sub ten minute miles on the ups.  Short sprints admittedly, but pretty bad ass walking nonetheless.  We are getting strong.

We are also quite beat up.  My back is on and off, my feet are ok, but I'm feeling the wear and tear.  Rex is not much different.   We have decided to drop back a bit and recover and recoup in the last weeks before the round the island.   From my past treks I know that it is not going to help staying up one night to walk along the roads, just to prove one can do it. We are either fit, or not.  Ready or not, it comes at us and we have to take the blows as they settle on our bodies.  Being rested is better than being hard(er)  at this point in time.   A couple more 20's and that's it.  It will be hele on time.

There direeves are about experiencing the transitional boundaries between life and art.  Art whether its through the spoken word, or an understanding of the place(s) through which we pass, or the simple flush of the experience through our bodies.  It is understanding that boundary of art/life, in a way that doesn't objectify reality, that recognizes the ethereal nature of existence  and the intransigence of objects.   Art is mostly emotion, and the evoking of that emotion.  Who is to say what is more artistic, an piece of object art, or the rush of sensations that one might feel as one steps on the cobblestones of a road traveled 150 years ago by the people of Hawaii     Pretty judgmental stuff.  

Rex has a teacher, who knows nothing about what he is doing, but who feels that performance art must follow some script that is unalterable.   She got all huhu when Rex told her we cut the one direeve short because of the heavy rains and the dangers on the road.   "Well most performance artists would have continued no matter what!"  was her way of denigrating Rex's experience.

I pointed out to Rex that we are exploring the transitions between life and art, and trying to avoid the transition between life and death.  A little caution on his part is an attempt to keep it that way. There are of course artists who have taken their performance art over the life death boundary,,once ..and they were not doing that as a part of BFA project.   His teacher is a twit.  

I feel increasingly exposed on the roads.  Most drivers see us as little more than big chickens or mongoose.  They'd be more careful around dogs on the roads than they are around us.   This is a sociopolitical decision that costs tens of lives every year here on oahu....mostly the poor and the aged.