Day 2: Honu

We had great sleep but were up early to the sound of the chickens. We spent the brisk 60 degree morning (ha!) exploring Po Po and Goong Goong's beautiful yard with all it's many fruit and flower trees and a river running through the edge of the property.

 Blake got to reconnect with his best friend, Scott over a round of golf, while the kids, the grandparents and I explored the North Shore. 

We stopped at a few of the most famous beaches and ended up in Haleiwa town for Matsumoto's shaved ice and lunch at a Kua Aina, a local burger place. 

We also spent some time at Haleiwa beach park and were amazed to see tons of Sea Turtles swimming so close to the shore. "Honu" is the Hawaiian word for sea turtle.

Day 1: Aloha

Wednesday, March 6th was the day for which we had been waiting for many months. We had dreamed, we had planned, then we had waited. Our flight was scheduled to leave at 7 am and we would arrive at approximately 3:30 in the afternoon Hawaii time. That was until a winter storm decided to hit the night before our departure causing our flight to be canceled. Instead, we were rebooked for a slightly later flight the following morning. This would mean losing one of our precious vacation days. The “before cancer me” would have grown bitter especially to see that our winter storm ended up to be a windy, rainy day and not the 8 inches of snow they at one time predicted. Instead of growing bitter, I was desperate to trust. I could see The Lord working out every detail knowing His timing was somehow His protection for us. We woke on Thursday to a clear, sunny day and boarded both of our flights without a hitch.

As I had eagerly anticipated March 6th, I must admit I had also anxiously anticipated it. I wasn't sure I was up for the challenge of taking two preschoolers on a 12-hour journey. The kids proved to be excellent travelers and were even complimented on their ability to stay entertained on such a long flight. We landed on time at about 5:30 pm Hawaii time, and our first stop was a local food chain called Zippy's for some of Blake's favorite foods. Our bodies were exhausted from being awake for 20 hours but our hearts were bursting with excitement to have made it to this amazing place that we have missed so much.

If you want to read about our Hawaiian activities from the start, click here. 

Rainbows

While I was hooked up to IV's having chemo drugs infused into my body, a dream was planted in my heart. I would sit with my mom at my side and think of better days ahead. Like a day that we would return to Blake's home and one of our favorite places on earth and finally get to have our kids experience it with us. Now here we are over a year later with cancer in our rearview, making the dream a sweet reality. 

Sweet for so many reasons: 

• we are surrounded by family (not just Blake's but my parents got to come along too)
• we escaped the cold and replaced our thick socks with slippers
• the Authentic Hawaiian and Asians foods are bringing such joy to my husband's face
• the kids are having experiences that we have been longing for them to have
• Need I even say it, this is paradise.

This morning I lay in bed in the early morning hours with a chorus of chickens “singing” in the background (there are a lot of wild chickens here) reminded that God is Faithful. He was faithful in the struggle but he is also faithful in the rainbow, the promise that He wants good things for us. Hours later as we were driving home to the North Shore from a refreshing day at Kailua Beach, I looked out the window to see this.  Coincidence?  Not a chance.  

Will you follow our rainbow over the next two weeks as I journal in word and photos?  

Day 1: Aloha
Day 2: Honu
Day 3: Ohana
Day 4: Waimea
Day 5: Maui
Day 6: Banyan Trees
Day 7: Sunsets
Day 8: Mahalo
Day 9: Hana ho!
Day 10: Spam Musubi
Day 11: Haleakala
Day 12: Keikis
Day 13: Aloha

The Legacy of Abraham

I have had the rich experience of studying the life of Abraham as we have dug through Genesis in Bible Study Fellowship this year. This week we read Genesis 25 and with the turn of a page of our Bibles, Abraham's long life is over. Abraham's 175 years yielded what many of us desire our much shorter lifespans will achieve. Although he was far from perfect and even made the same mistake twice (imagine that), he left an unmistakable legacy of faith in God for his family.

In fact, Isaiah 41:8 calls Abraham “God's friend”. What was the secret to having that kind of status with the Almighty Creator? Was it the fact that he waited for over 100 years for the birth of his promised son and heir to the promised land? Or perhaps it was that once his promised son was given to him, he took him up the mountain to sacrifice him? Maybe the secret lies in his final mission to secure a Godly wife for his cherished son so that his lineage of faith would continue after his death? Yes, I believe all these major events in Abraham's life led to his status as a friend of God. But even more than these acts were what was at the heart of them-expectant faith and willing obedience.

January 11th marked one year since completing my chemotherapy treatments. As we get further and further away from those dreadful days, the greater my struggle is to have that expectant faith and willing obedience that I see in Abraham. When my tomorrow was questionable and I needed every ounce of physical and emotional strength to be gifted to me, He had all my attention. I experienced amazing blessing as I intently looked to Him for each next step and saw Him so clearly answer and meet every need. So how does this kind of expectant faith and willing obedience that was present in my time of struggle become my life as it was Abraham's?

I think the answer lies in something I heard our teaching leader say in one of her many fascinating lectures on the life of Abraham. “You have to trust what you know and expect God to take care of the rest. ” God's faithfulness to me in my trial is what I know, and therefore, I must trust it. Then I approach everyday with great expectation of how He is going to reveal Himself and provide for me. I know the reward to be close communion and intimacy with Him and there is really is nothing greater than that.

The Morning Rush

It is another morning of rushing to get out the door. I purposely start this process 30-45 minutes ahead of time to cut down on the stress, and the yelling. There is something about having to ask twelve times for shoes and coats to be put on that turns me into a seriously “mean mommy”. Why should a 3 year old understand the concept of being late when she can't even tell time? That makes sense to me now but not so much this morning as she fought me to take off her bright pink tutu and wear shoes other than rain boots that were two sizes too small.  Somehow I am able to get her screaming little body strapped into her carseat and start speeding down the road. I think about the Tuesday we have ahead of us and stop to realize the date....January 22nd. 

Suddenly I am taken back to a year ago when I lie in my bed to read the news that my dear friend and co-worker has lost her eighteen year old daughter in a car accident. There were no adequate words for my friend then, and there are none now.  “I'm praying”, were all I had and today, one year later, they are still all I have. It is only with God's strength that a mom could face another day after such loss. It is reminders such as these that I wish I didn't have but often need that set me back on course-the gratefulness course. If I were with my friend today, I am sure she would cringe to hear me complaining about the struggle of getting my baby girl to submit to the shoes and jacket I have picked out for her in time to get to that next appointment. I am pretty sure she would encourage me to thank God for the gift of these precious years when she is testing and figuring out this world around her. She would likely be cheering me on to embrace the forming of her own opinions and exerting of her independence. Above all, she would say this life, her life is precious and don't ever take a moment of it for granted.  

Blessed

I am in the midst of the nap time routine when I hear a familiar roar coming up the road. Any other time of year, I am less than eager for what our sweet mail lady, Mary leaves. However, December brings a new excitement for the one o'clock hour as I run to the box to find it overflowing with beautiful cards that proclaim the good news that the holidays are a'comin.

There are countless things to enjoy about the Christmas season but cards have got to be one of my absolute favorites. As the sender, it is a chance for reflection, a way to sum up the year. It is also a chance for connection, a way to say even if life gets so busy that we don't get to talk, you are in our hearts and on our minds. For these reasons, I enjoy putting time into the process. There is always the search for the right picture and some years require a more detailed letter about the events of the past year.

When I saw the template for this year's card, I immediately knew it was the one. I continued to search but couldn't help but come back to the simply stated “Blessed” photo card. A year ago, I was on my fifth out of six chemotherapy treatments and just coming out of my chemo “hangover” to enjoy Christmas morning with our kids and both sets of parents. I was blessed then as I am today, a year later, feeling healthy and, quite honestly, the strongest I have felt in all my 35 years. 

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those that love Him, who have been called according to His purpose."

Romans 8:28

Romans 8:28 is written on the back of the card. I was reminded of the verse one day as I sat questioning The Lord on why certain things had turned out the way they did. God had certainly shown me His Goodness in the depths of my journey through breast cancer so why had I already forgotten this truth in that moment? I was reminded yet again that sometimes we need to be standing on the mountaintop looking back to see how His Good is being worked out.

As the receiver of cards, it is also a time of reflection, an opportunity to pause and thank The Lord for all the beautiful people that fill our lives. For this reason, I have a special tree that hangs in our kitchen to display all the wonderful greetings. Every time we gather to eat as a family, the kids' attention is drawn to the tree hanging next to us. Sweet smiling faces posed as a family or enjoying a fun vacation, illustrations of the nativity, written descriptions of our Savior--to me it all represents God's Grace and I am prompted to whisper a Christmas thank you.

Thank you for being one of those beautiful people that fill our lives and Merry Christmas from the Hamiltons!

Trust

This week my boy turned five. Why does “5” seem like such a big year. Is it just the start of school? Is it because of the shift in independence that I hear about? Perhaps it is the evolution from an animated-themed birthday party to all things football?

I am certain it has something to do with Kindergarten, independence and seeing him share the common ground of sports with his daddy. But for me I think it so huge because it is all about trust. (Let's be real, every day of parenting is about trust). As he starts to venture out from the shelter of this momma's wing, I have to trust that what we have spent the first four years pouring into him will yield the best possible return. I have to trust that he can respond without a glance toward mommy and daddy when he is asked a question. And when given choices, he will make decisions based on what he knows to be right and good. I have to trust that when he steps into that elementary school, his little life is in the hands of the One who holds all power and the ultimate victory.

It seems easy enough to say but where does this kind of trust come from? I wish I could say I have it within but the truth is…trusting in matters regarding those you love more than your own life can only come from looking toward the One who loves us all more than Himself. Doesn't it all-trust, loving our kids and Christmas for that matter all come back to the truth of John 3:16?

“For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so thatwhoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.” (John 3:16 AMP)