Good afternoon everyone. My heart goes out to everyone (residents, businesses, and visitors) affected by the terrible fires on Maui and the devastating images from Lahaina Town. It is hard to find the right words to describe the terrible scenes from such a beautiful, tropical paradise. I’ve been lucky enough to visit Maui a few times throughout my life and I have always made sure to spend a day or two walking around Lahaina. Looking through my photos from Maui, here is the last one I took of Laura and I under the iconic Banyan Tree in the heart of Lahaina.
Grant & Laura under the Banyan Tree in Lahaina (June 2022).
Whenever terrible things happen to places I love and have been to, I get triggered and feel a mix of emotions. This brings me back to the terrible images and videos from April 2019 of the beautiful, historic, and iconic Notre Dame cathedral burning. I couldn’t believe it, but I couldn’t change the channel. I watched in shock and disbelief for hours. Like Lahaina, Notre Dame will always have a special place in my heart.
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- Notre Dame in Paris, France (June 2011)
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- Grant at Notre Dame in Paris, France (June 2011)
I will attempt to describe the mix of emotions, but it may not translate well into words. It’s one part shock – how could something so terrible happen to something / some place so special? It’s one part sadness – I felt so sad for the families and businesses directly and indirectly effected by the terrible loss. But it’s also one (small) part happiness – I am glad I was able to experience it’s beauty, it’s magnificence, it’s charm before it was gone. That last part is the part I naturally gravitate toward and it makes me want to go out into the world and see everything before it is too late. Just because something / some place has been around for decades, centuries, millennia, or longer, does not mean it will be around forever.
Bad things happen half way around the world and sometimes pretty close to home. I’ve seen devastating wildfires burn majestic Redwood and Sequoia forests, I’ve seen floods wash away relaxing beach cities, and I’ve seen earthquakes topple historic buildings. Mother Nature and natural disasters are unpredictable, but make sure to treasure the places that matter that most to you and try to visit the special places you’ve always wanted to see.
Thank you for reading and please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section. Have a great day everyone.
I totally understand what you’re saying. I have been to Hawaii so many times and seeing the devastation brings back so many good and bad memories. It’s just very sad because it’s so familiar. You know exactly where this took place.
Exactly, you nailed it.
What are your thoughts on what the Hawaiian governor said about the prevalence of wildfires and extreme weather, Grant? And what can we do to help these poor residents?
I haven’t seen the update from the Hawaiian governor, but it was shocking to learn that most of the Hawaiian Islands have been in drought for years. There are certain areas that get tons of rain, year round, but the remaining parts of the islands get very little rain. I was very surprised when I learned this on my last trip to Maui in 2022.
Council member Kiani says, “ IF DISPLACED ON MAUI:
Southwest and Hawaiian Air have $19 flights from Maui to O’ahu and the Hawai’i Convention Center is being used as a shelter.”
Very interesting, I did not hear that announcement. Generally speaking, that is a great price for inter-island flights, but in this case, I think those airlines should offer free one way flights from Maui to the other islands.
Thinking out loud, if I was in Maui, I would look at every flight leaving all 4 Hawaiian Islands to every US destination and then position myself to the departure island. I’m not sure how quickly someone could get home, but it would be worth a shot. This is where the Flight Connections website would come in very handy.
I have a vacation booked for end of September in Waialea. Should I cancel?
Hmmm, I wonder if I would cancel? There are still other places to go on Maui, but I wonder if I would feel weird knowing what had just happened and that you won’t be able to visit Lahaina. What’s the mood of the locals and tourism at this moment?
Hmm, that is a tough question. You have a couple of options: keep you trip booked and wait until it gets closer to see how Maui looks when your trip gets closer; try to switch your plans to visit a different Hawaiian Island at that time; or push your trip to Maui back a few weeks / months.
I have a trip to Maui (staying in Kihei) in November, that I’m still planning to take, but will wait and see how everything looks on Maui until then.