I love anything dealing with WWII. I know it had to be one of the most difficult and scary times in modern history, but that era is filled with examples of the American strength and spirit. That generation went on to protect the freedoms offered by our Constitution, even when they had lived through times of despair and destitution during the depression and dustbowl. The desire to preserve our nation's freedom from tyranny was not lost with the loss of wealth, but only strengthened. So today, we started our day with a tour of the USS Arizona Memorial. The memorial offers a museum and movie that gives the history of the "day that will live in infamy". We learned that the Arizona was one of seven battleships moored along Ford Island just across the harbor. The Arizona was launched in 1915 and because it was an oil burner and there was a fuel shortage, it served during WWI as a gunnery training vessel in it's Norfolk, VA home port. Then in 1930 was modernized and as the Japanese became more and more agressive in the Pacific, it was sent to Pearl Harbor, along with the other battleships. On December 7, 1941 the Japanese planned their sneak attack, with the goal of completely debilitating and destroying the American presence in the Pacific, in hopes of ultimately allowing them free reign. Besides sending in all those bombers, they also sent in several minisubs. On that Sunday morning a few minutes before the bombers arrived, the USS Ward intercepted one of the minisubs and made the announcement. Just a short time later a soldier monitoring radar saw an advancing blip on the screen and when he made the notification he was told not to worry about it because it was assumed that it was an expected arrival of B-17's from the mainland. I wonder what the outcome of that day would have been had he decided to investigate further or if he had been made aware of the minisub incident? However, that was not to be and we now know that those were not B-17's, but Japanese bombers on a mission. Although the battleships' decks were armor cladded, the Japanese had developed and used and armor piercing bomb. It pierced the front deck exploding the ammunition cache below. She exploded at about 8:10 am and in less than 9 minutes sank, taking 1,177 soldiers with her. After getting the backstory and setting the mood, a Navy boat took our tour group across the harbor to the memorial. Once at the memorial, the mood became even more solemn.
It's a sobering experience to see the size of the ship, see the gnarled, jagged, and twisted iron skeleton, and to see the names of every soldier who lost their life serving his country. As I stood there on deck, thinking of the entombed soldiers under my feet, with the smell of diesel fuel thick in the air.....for fuel still bleeds from that 61 year old wound....a thought occurred to me. The ship is a metaphor for a life of faith and an example of Romans 8:28. For Romans tells us... "we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose". The Japanese thought they destroyed the battleship and from all appearances that day, it seemed true. However, when the smoke cleared our soldiers pulled together, used what parts they could salvage from the ship and began a rapid defense and plan of attack and in the end good defeated evil. The Japanese had not removed the American presence and the loss of life only strengthened the resolve of our men. The ship while appearing lost was worked for good and not only ended up saving lives then, it is now covered with living coral in a renewed purpose. So just as we may not understand our situation or things seem irreversibly damaged and lost, even if we still bear the scars, we must remember that if we remain faithful, God will work his purpose through our circumstances for the good.
After we finished our tour, we decided to have lunch at a little pizza place called Z Pizza, back in Waikiki. The food was excellent and ironically, even though the interior design was contemporary in nature, they were playing the light and happy dance tunes from the 40's. Our moods were lifted. From there we decided to hike Diamond Head.
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| Diamond Head |
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| Waikiki Beach |
Diamond Head is an extinct volcanic crater southeast of Waikiki. It is an iconic landmark that was, from 1906-1976, a restricted military installation and in 1910, used as a Fire Control Station. In 1976 a portion was opened to the public and now has a steep, 1.5 mile hiking trail to the summit. Diamond head got it's name when British sailors spyed the calcite crystals sparkling in the sun and thought they had found diamonds. The trail started off paved and not too bad, but by the time we hobbled along the rocky trail on the steeper portions and arrived at the mountain of steps, I wasn't sure my old knees were going to make it up and over the peak to the outlook. Of course, my loving children encouraged me with uplifting cheers like, "come on, you're not that old are ya? Surely, you can get up this little hill, granny. Wanna race us up these stairs....it's fun!" Yeah, it was fun, fun like that root canal I had last year! But I sure couldn't let them know the extent of my misery, so on I soldiered up and on. And am I glad I did, the view from top is breathtaking and well worth the climb! 
Of course, going down was alot quicker and easier and we had worked up quite a sweat and hankering for one of those Hawaiian Ices. Our final destination, after eating a monsterous Hawaiian Ice, at least as big as anything ever to come out of Texas, was a scenic drive along hwy 72 to watch the hoardes of surfers and to the Halona Blowhole Lookout. There we took in the powerful waves dashing against the lava formations. As the waves battered the sides a mist, like a wisp of breath, would drift out of the blowhole, kind of like a lumbering whale. And as the waves became more and more forceful, a geyser of water shot up through the blowhole and showered the rock. 
From there made our way home to plan another day of adventure.
It was a great day spent hiking over a mountain, reflecting on those entombed under the sea, and marveling at the power of the ocean as it carved it way through ancient lava cliffs.
Of course, going down was alot quicker and easier and we had worked up quite a sweat and hankering for one of those Hawaiian Ices. Our final destination, after eating a monsterous Hawaiian Ice, at least as big as anything ever to come out of Texas, was a scenic drive along hwy 72 to watch the hoardes of surfers and to the Halona Blowhole Lookout. There we took in the powerful waves dashing against the lava formations. As the waves battered the sides a mist, like a wisp of breath, would drift out of the blowhole, kind of like a lumbering whale. And as the waves became more and more forceful, a geyser of water shot up through the blowhole and showered the rock. 
From there made our way home to plan another day of adventure. 