We are heart broken and devastated by the fires that ravaged beautiful Lahaina and Maui's ohana. The island has joined together and it is incredible to see the amount of support and outpouring of aloha. Here are some thoughts from others and a photo gallery for our many visits to Lahaina.
As the director of the Wyland Gallery on Front Street in Lahaina, I wrote a sort of “love letter” to the historic banyan tree (“Efforts underway to revive 150-year-old banyan tree in Lahaina,” Star-Advertiser, Top News, Aug. 15). Here it is:
With the lights all gone, historic plaques charred, and rose-colored callouses removed from my eyes — I finally see you.
No more birds chattering at dusk, traffic miles away, and stillness all around — I finally hear you.
I too was planted here and allowed to grow strong; every branch a new journey supported by local soil, a community holding me up when I needed it most.
For years I walked by you in a hurry; on my way here or there and now, with all that static come and gone, I feel you — still standing — stronger than all those things that masked themselves as “important.”
I feel you, Lahaina. You can never be taken by mere elements because no one part of you stands alone — your community is rooted in the soil of pure love of aloha. I see not a burnt tree but something beautiful, as if for the first time. What do you see?
