KAUAIIAN'S

I started writing this post weeks ago and never hit the publish button because life got a lot more complicated when my niece Cassie decided to runaway and is still missing! 11 days.. she told her mom in a three way conversation with her boyfriends mom (Cynthia - whom she called first) that she was happy and being taken care of and she was fine. We are off today to hand out more posters and I am going to be with my mom whom is so beside her self I fear for her well being and health. Anyway if you want to read a couple of items from our trip here they are... REALLY PICTURES to follow..

It has been almost a month since last I posted. Another month has slipped away - September! Since two weeks of the month were spent in Kauai and one of those weeks we spent with Jeff and Michael... well let's just say it was truly paradise and a healing opportunity for this family of 4. We have not spent 7 days together as a family since Michael went off to college (just some weekends here and there)! An amazing time with sightseeing, driving, adventures, eating and yes just a couple of Mia tai's. A couple of stories for you.

One night having dinner and after dad (Rich) says hey how about a helicopter ride... sure, I am thinking to myself this is the beer talking. Rich and I both swore this is one event that is not in our top 100 or 1,000,000 for that matter of things to DO. Seems several times over the past years we have been to Kauai one of these man made flying birds runs into some type of flying problem and they don't swim well in the ocean either and the people end up that nights, nightly news headlines (not for me). The next day Rich has the 4 Hylands booked on a helicopter flight - Wednesday 8:00 am. Which nightmare did I just wake up in? Jeff and Michael are thrilled and well I just don't want to do this entire fly thing, I am scared but I don't want to be left out and not have the experience of sharing the memories with my family gathered around the dinner table sometime in the future. Then I think of Meghan and all she went through and if she was on this trip with us she would be on that bird in the sky without hesitation. Okay I will do it. No Yes No... what am I thinking.

Wednesday am (7:30) show up at the airstrip in Port Allen - weigh in (for weight distribution on the copter) thank goodness the reader was behind the counter and I did not have to share that information with the hubby, Mike and Jeff. Sign waivers, strap on some flotation device around our waist, receive further instruction ... and wait and wait and wait. No helicopter.... This must be a sign from God ... not met to be .... CANCELLED. Dodged a bullet. Oh wait the lady is rescheduling us for tomorrow... Really - now I have to think about it some more and stress and miss more sleep? This can not be good. Tomorrow in Lihue at 4:00 pm... don't you know the trade winds blow even harder in the afternoons and it rains. Surely I will be meeting with Jesus tomorrow.

Thursday 5:oo pm... we did it tour of the Kauai from the air over - done. I am- getting off the helicopter and breaking down in tears. All I can say is sometimes God just knows more about what you need than you know yourself. Jeff laughing at me for crying and video tapping it at the same time. A GIANT family hug, lots of emotion and memories to last a lifetime. Conclusion - you only get one chance at a 1st time for everything in your life. Maybe someday I would do this again but chances are it won't be with Mike, Jeff and Rich and it would not be the 1st time. One word summary - Beautiful.

Flying home on the plane on Friday - Hawaiian airlines and I have heard of this happening but never experienced it first hand.... Lady behind me leans forward and says " can you get a flight attendant QUICK".

Rich who is plugged into his head phones gives me the what do you want now look when I tap him on the shoulder (he is on the isle).... The women behind just asked for a flight attendant QUICK. He bounces up gets help and the women says my husband was just breathing fun and the flight attendant is trying to wake up HANK.... Long story short Hank died - EXPIRED on the flight. We left our seats and we were asked to go stand up front. The got Hank out of his seat, found medical people on board the flight and started the process of reviving and defibrillating this gentlemen. They worked on him along time. Very sad! Hank was 65 a diabetic and had heart problems according to his wife who remained very calm while all this was happening to her hubby. Hank ended up in the galley for the rest of the flight and when we arrived at LAX the paramedics had to come on and pronounce Hank. So it was a smooth but stressful flight for all the passengers. While we were standing in first class this irate foreigner jumps out of his seat charges us standing in the galley of first class and tells us to go back to our seats ,quit looking down the row and we are interfering with his move. God always leaves the means ones here longer on earth. OH he was ugly yelling at us. He should have just put his headphones on and watched the stupid movie. The plane was FULL were we supposed to sit on the WING. DUMB BASTARD... just thinking about it now makes me so angry. End of story. Land LAX and LAPD thinks it is a crime scene and no one can leave...! CRIME SCENE??? about 12 LAPD officers are standing around arguing about what to do... Don't they know everything about me from when I booked the flight and a manifest that shows where everyone was sitting..... Finally the captain of the plane and the paramedic who pronounced Hank, said let these people go have they not been through enough - he passed of natural causes. Oh let me tell you I have never looked so forward to a super shuttle ride home....