Parable of the Plumeria

Oahu Storm

We had quite a storm one night. I had driven to a Relief Society activity in Kahuku, which is six miles from our pad. It was raining a little when I left around six p.m.. At ten p.m., the husband of one of the women, showed up in his truck to take three of us home. I kinda laughed and thought,  "it's just some rain". I'm an old farm girl and a little rain on a paved road isn't intimidating. Fortunately, Ethan, insisted and persisted, and I was smart enough to comply, this once. We got into his truck and started home. I can't explain how hard the rain was coming down. He literally had to stop driving at times, because he couldn't see. There were also torrents of water rushing across the rutted road. Our little missionary car would never had made it. We finally made it to our driveway and he turned down into it and stopped. He decided to walk it to see if he could drive through it and deliver me home. He determined...no: it was too deep. He told me to get on his back and he would carry me. How sweet is that. Ethan is 36 and could have, but, this time I did not comply. My farm girl kicked in and I told him I would walk it if he let me hold his arm. The water was easily three feet deep. It was best it was dark or I would have been able to see what we were wading through. I made it to high and dry ground to discover Elder Cameron and our landlord had been diverting water all evening so our pad wouldn't flood. This is our driveway, the morning after, looking out toward the highway. Ethan, picked us up later, and took us to get our car. He's my hero.

We were fortunate. A neighbors kitchen. 

This is a plantation/event property in the Sunset Community. They. Got. Hammered. They had an event in a week and they were flooded with mud. That grassy area under the mud is where they have weddings, etc. The men in the community, gathered, and literally pushed the mud with brooms. It is a red, clay-like mud. It stains everything and dries cement hard. Mud sucker machines came to help. Everything was hosed off with power washers. Gravel was hauled in. It was an enormous project.

Miracles still happen. Two days before the planned event.

Dry, Aloha