It's 6:45 p.m. on Tuesday in Poipu, Kauai. Cyndy free Fb run e r if crew Em by dee z rev see cr and I got a tip from a waiter at one of the local restaurants to go to Poipu Beach at sunset and watch for the turtles. Supposedly the sea turtles in Kauai come up out of the water and "bask" on the beach. We have no idea if this is accurate or not. But we think we're on to something when we see about 10 orange cones placed on the beach with a sign about protected wildlife. Another clue are the people. There are about 3-400 people crowded around the cones. We are all whispering. Waiting. Wondering. Is this really true? How many will come? Why do they do this? Will they actually come?
And then, Emerson, my granddaughter whispers in my ear, "Pops, look!" And then she lets out a tiny squeal of wonder and my whole body is instantly invaded by wonder and goosebumps as I watch not one, but two huge sea turtles slowly make their way up the beach to "bask". And then we watch as a little one (we find out later that his or her name is "Le Le" in Hawaiian which translates roughly into "Squirt!") comes up and Em is totally mesmerized as she whispers, "Papa it's a baby! Awe it's so cute!"
But then it gets a little scary for us. After Squirt arrives the turtles seem to be a bit restless. We see two or three come up and then retreat back into the water. Emerson notices that some of the people are getting too close and crossing into the protected region of the sand. She says, "Pops, this is their ocean not ours, right? They need to give them room!" Just then, a man and a woman stand up and ask folks to back off. They identify themselves as volunteers for a non-profit organization that is here to protect the Hawaiian Sea Turtle. He then proceeds to tell us that although no longer endangered, the Hawaiian Sea Turtle is still considered a protected species. The crowd immediately backs off. The woman then shares that this is the only public space in the entire world where Hawaiian Sea Turtles come up and "bask" on the beach for this long...12 hours. And that if we wait and watch we will see up to 40 Hawaiian Sea Turtles coming to rest for the night.
As we walk back from the beach, we are all on a Hawaiian high. Later I ask Emerson her favorite part of the evening and she says she can't decide whether it was "Le Le" the "baby" turtle, or the two people who helped protect the turtles from harm. She doesn't say it, but I'm wondering if in her dreams that night she wasn't one of those volunteers, too.
In our book on the Holy Spirit, Bruce Blumer shares that one of the words used for the Holy Spirit, is "paraclete". It's a complex Greek word that means "someone sent to walk alongside someone else in order to guide, protect, and counsel, an advocate.
On Tuesday night, Cyndy, Emerson, and I literally witnessed the Holy Spirit in action in the form of two faithful volunteers sacrificing their time and energy in order to protect and advocate for others. And, truth be told, I'm still covered in goose bumps just thinking about them. May God transform Bear Creek into a community filled with that same Holy Spirit.
Your friend and pastor, thankful for so many advocates doing ministry with me, Brook
PS: If you'd like to read more about this volunteer group click here