Setting out aboard the early ferry, I began a constant scan of the water’s surface, almost expecting to see dolphins. Upon rounding the far side of Lanai, a baleen whale suddenly appeared, quite close and visible through the glass of the wheelhouse. After leaping over to the starboard side of the boat, the full arching back and dorsal fin were seen about halfway between the vessel and the island. After docking, walking to camp, selecting a site, and pitching my tent, I headed back to the beach, and there saw more blows on the water, perhaps from the same whale. As it progressed past, yet more blows followed, from what appeared to be another adult and calf heading the same direction as the first. They seemed to be transiting, as there were no special displays except one fin slap which showed the long, white pectoral fin of a humpback. Even more blows were seen on the water as I walked toward the cliffs carrying a Beltane candle. Hiking to the highest accessible point, I set the candle and encircled it with a wreath of rose pedals, almonds, and mint, then sitting down to face the monolith across the deep chasm. The version of the legend that I’d heard described two native sweethearts whose families feuded and tried to keep them apart; in despair the young woman threw herself from the monolith to her end. Her lover recovered the body and climbed, carrying her back to the top to build a burial mound there. He then dove over the cliff after her in death. I said a little prayer for lovers everywhere: real lovers, tragic lovers – all the while gripped by vertigo knowing a plunge into history was just steps away. I let the candle’s light burn off negative habits and beliefs, preparing me for the second half of the year. This moment complete, I carried the candle down the craggy path as birds whooped and cried in sad, guttural voices. There were no cetacean sightings on Friday, but on Saturday spinner dolphins entered the bay, leaping into breaching lobs and high rate spins, slapping down on the water’s surface. The surf boiled on the cliffs and pools which flank the bay, continually exploding into geysers of spray. After days of sleeping by the beach and swimming in the ocean, now every time I close my eyes I see waves forming and feel tugs at the corresponding parts of my body.
