Happy Honu!

I love living in Hawaii. I love to surf some of the best waves that the world has to offer, in some of the warmest conditions. Quite often, as I sit in the line-up inbetween sets, I can see plenty of Honu (Green Sea Turtles). They are so beautiful and graceful as they comb the reef for food. Many times they lift their head and often a fin out of the water as if to say hello to a fellow waterman. To me they are further proof of a Heavenly Father who obviously had an eye for beauty as this world unfolded in its creation. It saddens me that these beautiful animals are endangered (mostly due to human introduction). The Hawaiians believe them to be the physical manifestation of their 'Aumakua (Hawaiian Ancestors). Hawaiians show them Aloha and to see them is a blessing. In fact it was once Kapu (taboo) to harm them. Even with the introduction of Christianity, the 'Aumakua have continued to be remembered with fondness and reverence by Hawaiians. I look for the Honu every time I get in the water and I pray that these beautiful creatures will survive.