When I heard the “call” in the 2nd week of January that I was to go to Hawaii - the Big Island - to do a little personal solo retreat, I wasn’t sure what that was about. I was riding my bike in Santa Monica when all of a sudden I knew I had to go. It was odd how it came out of the blue, but in truth, that’s kind of how my life has been. I’ve always - for whatever reason - been very in tune with my inner voice… call it my heart, my intuition, my higher self, (whatever fits), but it’s always been there, and I am not a stranger to these “random” and ”spontaneous calls” where I just know deep inside that this is what I have to do, even though my logical mind doesn’t always (or ever) comprehend… at least until maybe AFTER the fact. This was one of those particular moments.
So… without really knowing why, but knowing it’s absolutely what I needed to do, I looked into flights & accommodations to Hawaii for January 20th.
When I arrived to the Big Island, I could immediately feel the energy difference from here in LA. Huge. Everything there felt so quiet… it was so distinct for me. I told a friend that the energy was so “quiet” that it almost like I could hear the “hum” of the earth. It was very interesting.
In my 5 days there, I had a very solitary time… which is what I was looking for… just being with myself and nature, and the Big Island of Hawaii offers nature in some of it’s rawest form. It’s a very “young” island… with an active volcano that is constantly creating new land everyday. But because of this, the Big Island has a lot of desolate black lava fields that go on for miles. One evening, I was standing on this moonscape by myself, right on the edge of the ocean watching the sun set into the Pacific. It was surreal, to say the least. I felt like I was stripped bare… just me, my soul, and the elements of life. What a unique place to be. How often are we that intimate with the earth and the very elements that give us life? Though I was technically “alone”, I also felt very connected… to my own soul, to the earth and to everyone. It was profound and enlivening at the same time. Magical, really.
All the while I was there, I would spend my mornings writing… writing one of the last chapters in a book I have been working on for the last 3 years. For those who are close to me, they know about this… the book I am writing. For those of you who aren’t aware of this, I will share with you (as it is time… it will be coming out this year). It is a book called, “Michael Jackson: The Man in Our Mirror A Reflection of Our Collective Soul”. There is a very LONG story as to how I came to write this book… it goes back as far as when I was a teenager living in Minnesota… and the journey through the years of what I call, the “Michael Magic and Miracles” that has happened in my life over that time. Though my logical mind didn’t understand ANY OF IT (and that was the very point - to recognize and acknowledge that there is sooo much more to life than we can see and explain), it has been the most surreal journey and I knew that one day I would write a book about it all… and after Michael died in June of 2009, I knew it was time. Basically the essence of the book is how Michael - in his amplified state of being - served as the mirror to us all.
Anyway… so the chapter I “happened” to be writing while in Hawaii is called, “Earth Song: A Call from the Deepest Part of our Heart”. Well, I hadn’t necessarily planned that I would be writing this chapter when I was in Hawaii, rather it just kind of happened that way. “Earth Song” is one of Michael’s deepest songs… where he calls for all of us to really look at what we’ve done to the world and in that reflection, to see that what we’ve done to the planet is really about what we’ve done to ourselves, because the earth is only a reflection of US. How we treat ourselves is how we treat others and also how we treat the planet. Michael pleads with us in this song to look at this connection because it is the KEY and the path to healing our planet; in truth, it’s really about healing our own hearts. There’s much more to say about all of this but you’ll have to stay tuned for the book.
Anyway… as the days went on in Hawaii, I soon realized that this was the very place I needed to be to write this chapter, because I was feeling it ALL… I was feeling the earth in its purest and rawest form. I wasn’t writing from my head, I was writing from the feeling in my heart, and this is the only place from which it could be written. What we feel, we can heal. It all was making sense.
And to top it off, just to make sure I really got it, I “happened” to do a whale watching trip on the last morning I was there. In my heart, I just felt it was going to be something special. Again, how did I know? My mind didn’t know, but my heart did. Well… never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined what we were to experience with the whales that day. Let’s just say the captain of our boat said, “In 9 years of doing these excursions, NEVER have I seen anything like this; you are seeing the whale watch of the century.”
Yes, there were whales - Humpbacks - EVERYWHERE!!!!! Tales here, mothers and babies there (some swimming within FEET of our boat) to whales breeching - jumping high out of the water - and slamming down with a HUGE splash. Breathtaking and awe-inspiring! Enough to bring tears and to put everything in life into perspective. I was overwhelmed and so was everyone on that boat that day. And so for 3 hours straight, we watched a show that no Hollywood movie or Broadway show in NY could EVER EVER EVER top. Ah, nature… it is the greatest show on earth… and the most awesome. I felt so humbled. Especially because on some level I knew… though as I say, I could’ve never known THIS.
As the captain told us we had to head back - with sadness but also total gratitude - he turned up the motor and we headed back, only to realize that the show wasn’t quite over!! I was sitting in the front when all of a sudden, 2 huge whales on EITHER side of us surfaced right in front of the boat and escorted us for another 10 minutes!!!!! They wanted us to know how appreciative they were that we were there… and for me, I “heard” them say, “Thank you… “ They knew what I was writing about… about the Earth… about how we need to wake up - all of us - and take personal responsibility in healing our world… by healing ourselves.
Wow… I kept thinking about the words in Michael’s song… “What about the crying whales? We’re ravaging the seas… “ Not only did he want me to know this intellectually, he wanted me to FEEL it but also to experience it first hand… to experience our brothers and sisters of the sea, the biggest beings to ever inhabit the earth. Wow… I soooooooo got it. I was moved, as that is what the heart does… it moves us… not only to feel, but also to take action. Emotion is energy in motion. When we feel, we move.
After the “whale watch of the century,” I found myself at one of my favorite secluded beaches for the rest of the afternoon. I sat on the lava rocks on this white sand beach with palm trees and wrote in my journal about all that I was feeling and experiencing. All of a sudden, a sea turtle pulled him/herself up on the rock about 10 feet from me to take a nap while another frolicked and swam in the tide pools surrounding me. Just when I felt I couldn’t get any more blessed and honored, those beautiful turtles showed up. Hmmmm…
What a trip it was. Simply magical.
I wanted to share the video and lyrics to Michael’s Earth Song. Please watch… and most importantly, go into your heart and feel…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgeNDUChKPA
The lyrics:
What about sunrise
What about rain
What about all the things
That you said we were to gain…
What about killing fields
Is there a time
What about all the things
That you said was yours and mine…
Did you ever stop to notice
All the blood we’ve shed before
Did you ever stop to notice
The crying Earth the weeping shores?
Aaaaaaaaah Oooooooooh
Aaaaaaaaah Oooooooooh
What have we done to the world
Look what we’ve done
What about all the peace
That you pledge your only son…
What about flowering fields
Is there a time
What about all the dreams
That you said was yours and mine…
Did you ever stop to notice
All the children dead from war
Did you ever stop to notice
The crying Earth the weeping shores
Aaaaaaaaah Oooooooooh
Aaaaaaaaah Oooooooooh
I used to dream
I used to glance beyond the stars
Now I don’t know where we are
Although I know we’ve drifted far
Aaaaaaaaah Oooooooooh
Aaaaaaaaah Oooooooooh
Aaaaaaaaah Oooooooooh
Aaaaaaaaah Oooooooooh
Hey, what about yesterday
(What about us)
What about the seas
(What about us)
The heavens are falling down
(What about us)
I can’t even breathe
(What about us)
What about apathy
(What about us)
I need you
(What about us)
What about nature’s worth
(ooo, ooo)
It’s our planet’s womb
(What about us)
What about animals
(What about it)
We’ve turned kingdoms to dust
(What about us)
What about elephants
(What about us)
Have we lost their trust
(What about us)
What about crying whales
(What about us)
We’re ravaging the seas
(What about us)
What about forest trails
(ooo, ooo)
Burnt despite our pleas
(What about us)
What about the holy land
(What about it)
Torn apart by creed
(What about us)
What about the common man
(What about us)
Can’t we set him free
(What about us)
What about children dying
(What about us)
Can’t you hear them cry
(What about us)
Where did we go wrong
(ooo, ooo)
Someone tell me why
(What about us)
What about babies
(What about it)
What about the days
(What about us)
What about all their joy
(What about us)
What about the man
(What about us)
What about the crying man
(What about us)
What about Abraham
(What about us)
What about death again
(ooo, ooo)
Do we give a damn?
Pictures of the whales…


Life is magic!
Lisa