Kona, The BIG Island – Birthday Trip (early)
Monday, August 4, 2025
Morning Walk
But, we had a different approach this morning:
We were informed that this was Kahuku Senior Sunrise 2026. The seniors hold a Sunrise Breakfast the Monday before school starts. School Starting!
Then, we had a regular Monday of CARE meeting, meetings with staff on campus, Student Visits and appointments. Then, we ended with Ukulele class!
Tuesday, August 5, 2025
Morning Walk to Point and down to campus and back.
We had a couple of check in’s and then errands. My beloved IPhone 13mini is misbehaving and we had to make a trip to Honolulu and then a stop in Kanehoe and back to La’ie. On the way around Kaneohe Bay we were treated to a show:
I couldn’t get the phone out quick enough for the formation, but then this close up fly over of them separately.
That was our air show!
We had a wonderful dinner with Aunty Charlie at Turtle Bay:
Delicious Food, Beautiful Scenery, Great People and Talk Story!!
Then, back to the PAD, pick up our friends the Gathrights and off to Honolulu to take them to the airport. They are off to California before back home to Japan!
Whew . . . Day over!
Wednesday, August 6, 2025
Morning Walk:
Again, to campus for Meetings, a presentation, and some more student visits.
We ended the evening at the PCC:
and a quick trip across campus for the TVA Family Carnival:
Great way to end the night!
Thursday, August 7, 2025
Early Meeting on Campus and various meetings all morning. Student visits continue to be the privilege I get to share as a missionary here at BYU-H.
Finished up the office day and headed to the temple.
Friday, August 8, 2025
Early morning flight to the Big Island:
We had lunch at Happiness Kona on the wharf:
Walked down to the church and palace:
And across the street. . .
We checked in to our Priceline hotel reservation. $157 a night. . . I wasn’t sure what we got ourselves into:
And off to Keauhou Bay for the Night Manta Ray Snorkel Tour:
I got some great pictures of the group
We were just a couple of blocks from our hotel at this location . We hadn’t been aware of that and spent a great deal of time trying to find legal parking at this site and realized afterwards that we could have parked at our hotel and walked down.
Saturday, August 9, 2025
We wanted to show the Wayts places from our last trip to Kona three years ago. We had been at the Kannapu’s Macadamia Farm and loved our time there. We met the Missionary Couple that is working on the Kona Temple Rebuild who are staying in the cottage on the property now during their mission:
We started off going North to look at the petroglyphs at Puako Petroglyph Park, passed through Kakiki-Honokohau National Historical Park. Then made our way back to Dolphin Discovery office at Keauho Shopping Center to check in for the Captain Cook Snorkeling Tour and off to Keauhou Bay:
“A Three Hour Tour” – turned out to be just that!
A Beautiful Snorkeling trip. Overcast day, but fun time
The day is just getting started. We only have one here. Off to Kilauea, Hawaii’s Volcanoes National Park. . .
Thurston Lava Tubes are next:
We finished off the day with the 2 hour drive back around to Kona. The only place we could find to have dinner at 10pm was Denny’s
Sunday, August 10, 2025
Church began at 9am. It was nice to have an extra hour before church. We attended the Kona 1st Ward. We attended this ward when we visited with the Kannapu’s. When we were going in to the sacrament meeting today, Elder Hudnall said, “can you believe three years ago that we would be serving a mission here?”
Hurried back to check out on time and get ready to fly back to Oahu:
After a 30 minute flight we were back in Honolulu and twice that time drive North, we pulled into La’ie and onto the Point with a rainbow welcoming us home.
We are blessed and feeling very grateful for the regenerating time and return to business of our campus mission life. There were many uplifting things this week, some trials that we’ve heard about and others we helped people with. During one of our scripture study times this week we came across this quote:
Spiritual First Responders
…[P]romptings are pure inspiration from heaven. When they confirm or testify to us, we need to recognize them for what they are and never let them slip past. So often, it is the Spirit inspiring us to reach out to someone in need, family and friends in particular. “Thus … the still small voice, which whispereth through and pierceth all things” (D&C 85:6), points us to opportunities to teach the gospel, to bear testimony of the Restoration and Jesus Christ, to offer support and concern, and to rescue one of God’s precious children.
Think of it as being what is called a first responder. In most communities the first responders to a tragedy, disaster, or calamity are firefighters, police officers, paramedics. They arrive with lights flashing, and may I add, we are so incredibly grateful for them. The Lord’s way is less obvious but requires just as immediate a response. The Lord knows the needs of all His children—and He knows who is prepared to help. If we let the Lord know in our morning prayers that we are ready, He will call on us to respond. If we respond, He will call on us time and time again and we will find ourselves on what President Monson calls “the Lord’s errand.” We will become spiritual first responders bringing help from on high.
Source
Ronald A. Rasband, “Let the Holy Spirit Guide”, April 2017 General Conference
Related verses
May we continue to “let the Holy Spirit guide” us in our daily lives and the Light of Christ be our beacon is our prayer for us all this week.
Love,
