Walking around Pu'uhonua o Honanau south of Kona, Hawaii, I took in the sites of this sacred place... the people reveling in the beaches nearby, snorkeling in the calm bay, the ocean breezes cooling the warmth of the early morning, and the swaying palm trees. An idyllic scene of beauty and tranquility.
Today, this place is a refuge from our busy, daily lives, but in the not-too-distant past, the journey to this location was a matter of life or death. Breaking the Hawaiian code of conduct or law (kapu) meant death... unless you could reach one of these sanctuary sites.
Finding refuge allowed the individual to be safe... as long as they remained in the confines of the sanctuary.
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| Where is your place of refuge? (Photo: Pu'uhonua o Honaunau, Hawaii, Larry Gardepie) |
The last two years have been a matter of life and death for many of us. Our social networks have been stretched as injustices and inequities have come to light. Some see government overreach; others experience safety in knowing how to protect loved ones and their community. Stay-at-home orders isolated and confined us, but some noticed a calming effect as they were forced to slow down and retreat into life's basics.
Where is the refuge or sanctuary that will protect me... or us... when we no longer know how to balance individual and societal needs?
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| When do you comfort others? (Photo credit: Baby Blues, July 26, 2020, Rick Kirkman and Jerry Scott) |
Rather than seeking sanctuary -- looking for a personal place of solitude -- I wonder if we are being invited to become sanctuary for ourselves and others?
- Am I able to set aside differences and see shared challenges?
- Will I sit with the pain of injustice and accept that I have not noticed?
- Can I work toward a broader understanding of common unity (community)?
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| How will you emerge from the pandemic? (Photo: San Pedro Harbor and Channel, Larry Gardepie) |
In essence, we have an active role and responsibility in re-creating norms as we emerge from these years of strife and division. We can escape to our place of refuge or we can become a place of comfort and peace for others. We can choose to argue or we can choose to come together. The choice is ours, as individuals and a community, to to seek and become sanctuaries for safe dialogue.
I really resonate with the words - "become sanctuary". Most of my information came from Michener's book, Hawaii, written in 1959. I wonder how much of the book was accurate, although possibly accurate with what was known at the time.
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