September has arrived with her pensive moods. In the heat of summer she comes, freshly sunburned with eyes the color of the sky and the hills, her bare arms are strong from the summer fields yet her hair is the color of Autumn and her breath is cinnamon and nutmeg. Her arrival tells us that these weeks will be the last of summertime, and she will pass the remaining days out slowly and smoothly as the great hunter, Orion, rises in the evening skies and we turn our thoughts to the harvest season.
Yours truly was born into the agricultural education schedule. The schools of my youth, like the Hawaii Episcopal Academy at St. James Church, were run with the farms and ranches in mind, and when the children were needed at home during the summer the schools stood silent in the buzzing heat. Summers were long, and those who had no connection to the land would find work in the little stores or with builders busy for the short season. Some went off to camps and swam in lakes, learning the ways of pioneers and nomads. It was a different time.
The unions have the schools now for better or worse, and the needs of the teachers and growing numbers of administrators require more days each year for duties outside of teaching. Summer has become much shorter, and it seems to be one of those cases of all losses and no gains. No one is seen celebrating. The children are not needed at home anymore, and the work in the fields, while still dawn to dusk, takes place guiding machinery while listening to an iPod.
Still, September in Waimea is a special time as folks turn their thoughts away from their blue-tarp camps along the coast to their hunting dogs and the high pastures above the village. The rhythm of the seasons will not be denied, and soon the wean-off calves will be taking their first steps at life without their tired mothers to butt and beg. Once again the great cattle trucks will rumble through town from the dry makai pastures up to the sweet hillsides of Puanuanu and Waikii.
Winter surf will seem to appear out of nowhere with great hissing breakers crowding the ancient valleys and slamming at the feet of the soaring sea cliffs. September is the month that the Kolea slip back to earth from the embrace of the sky that beckoned to them in April. Our lawns and pastures must be such a restful blessing to those extraordinary travelers! The Kolea who winters at our home returned early this year, causing us to wonder if some natural sensitivity has allowed him knowledge of a hard winter to come.
As the Kolea arrive in the heavens, the mahimahi will arrive in the deep. Each of these winter animals bringing flashes of gold into our lives as the dark-hearted blue marlin turn their violent hungers toward the equator and the Marquesas Islands beyond for the cool months of the northern hemisphere to come.
To this old-timer it is the natural passage of the seasons that mark our lives in Waimea. The seasons are embroidered with ancient, natural patterns, while our pockets contain slick technologies to rival any city dweller’s best. It is true also that the football season will soon alter our daily lives, and wonderful dramas like Downton Abbey will once more captivate our imaginations as the night sky fills with white diamond stars. Still, it is the smell of ohia logs burning and the plaintive calls of the mother cows reaching across the pasture lands that will ease our hearts and calm our souls.
Living here on the leeward slopes of the Kohalas, out on the saddle lands of Puu Kapu or along our spectacular coast line where fields of dark lava embrace emerald green resort oases and sparkling coves is a special treasure. That is why I write these monthly news letters about the charming blessings we all share, and sharing is something we all do with each other, no?
At Property Buyers Hawaii here in West Hawaii we are trying our best to work with the folks who want to live here and be a part of our wonderful community. Some come from Kona, some from Hilo, many travel here from Oahu and the mainland, but every one has the same need and hunger for community.
At Property Buyers Hawaii we work only with folks looking for a place to enjoy the years of their lives. Folks who are selling property have plenty Realtors to choose from. Buyers should have their own agents too! We begin the same with everyone … a handshake, a welcoming smile and a heartfelt mission to help them become a wonderful addition to our beloved community.
If you know anyone who is looking for a place between Laupahoehoe and Hualalai Resort, we are the best people to call.
Malama pono,
Bill Jardine, Principal Broker
Property Buyers Hawaii
High Country Traders Building
(808) 885-6061
