Aloha, friends. The following is an account of an activation and initation from the transformative fire of Pele, the Hawaiian fire goddess. She has been erupting in what are called “episodes” for over 3 months at the time of this writing.

There is so much to share about episode 15 of the eruption at Kilauea. The historically high 1,100 foot fountains, the massive amounts of vog, tephra and glass shards in the air, the park rangers at the entrance booths just waving people in and through without pay simply to keep the traffic moving. The entire experience is what we might call epic, and yet for me the main event was something not outwardly visible at all, something even more wondrous.

I had gone down the previous evening, March 26, as Pele was birthing again. The flow was exquisite that night – soft, feminine, gentle, and beautiful. Her north vent was bubbling into oozy overflows from its own little lava lake, filling and spilling over, draining back down and refilling again. She he was in early labor, and the ebb and flow of the lava cauldron was following her breath. The colors at dusk were sublime.

I had thought she might move into fountaining that night, but she was taking her time. Not being a night-owl, I drove home in the dark and got to bed around 11:30.

Working at home the next morning, I checked the summit webcams around 11AM. She was producing a huge fountain out of the south vent, and it had just begun an hour or so before. It looked like she might go for a while. It looked as amazing as the previous episode. Oh my….

“Maybe I should go again,” I thought. But my mind resisted. My body was tired from the venture the day before and staying up way past my usual bedtime. It would mean another 5 hours of driving, big crowds, the possibility she’d cease before I got there. I wondered if the toll on the body would out-weigh the benefits.

But here is the thing. My knowing was clear and forceful. “Go!” Guidance was practically yelling in my head, which left the  objections of my mind pretty weak. “Just GO!” So I did. I learned years ago never to argue with guidance, and have followed it faithfully ever since.

Getting ready, I tended what needed tending. I arranged for someone to stop in and feed Joey, got gas for the car and food-fuel for my body. All of my gear was still packed from the night before, so I was soon on my way.

When I got within 5 miles of the park entrance and could see the massive fountain towering above the 600-foot crater rim, I can tell you I know longer felt tired. It was absolutely electrifying. Everything in me – body, mind, spirit – was totally amped. Holy wow!

I parked at one of my usual spots and began the hike, highly tuned to a special ecstasy inside. A dear friend had texted “give my love and respect to Pele,” so that was the first thing I did when she came into partial view on the trail, still fountaining above the rim. I was only another 10 minute walk from my spot.

I think we all know this, that it’s one thing to look at pictures and another to be there. I would say I experienced this truth in the boldest relief I ever have. I had seen lots of images and video from episode 14 that were historic and epic. I also had felt a sense of missing out, wished I hadn’t been working that day. And now here I was, in her world, beholding her presence body to body.

Sheer, raw power, yes. A scale of proportion beyond imagining, even as you look right at it, yes. Fountains three football fields high. The jet roar of the eruption audible from miles away. The visual of seeing her dance – pure fire and love through a fierce force of creation – was awe inspiring. It was pure delight to see her fountaining in the shape of a heart and angel wings when I arrived! The white cherry on top was the Koa’e Kea bird flying in front of the massive fountain of red.

I took videos and photos, and spent lots of time just looking and communing. I noticed that as I did, and long after I was home, even into the next couple of days, something very special had happened. The visual of her fountain of light – sometimes a heart, sometimes an angel, sometimes a candle or Christmas tree, sometimes just a pure column of red – was inside of my body. That expression of creative love and light was fountaining right inside me, from solar plexus to crown and beyond. I didn’t even have to close my eyes to see it. It was (and is) just THERE. I experience this as a merging of spirit and realities (hers and ours) that literally blows my mind. 

There is a special communion amongst eruption viewers, both with Pele and with each other. Some just happen to be visiting (from all over the world) at just the right time. Others (like me) are local and go every time we can. Others island hop over from previous Pele creations for the chance to drop in and see.

Photogs abound with their massive lenses and tripods. People have their dogs and children along, couples walk holding hands, and for all of us, it feels a bit like Christmas. You hear it in the excited conversation, feel it in the happy-footed gaits of the hikers. We are all receiving a tremendous gift, a showering of blessing, a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity the only or every time it happens.

And then there was the magic of the aftermath. You know how when you have amazing, passionate, fiery and intimate lovemaking, hot and activating and wondrous, and then afterward you lie suspended in the glow, soft and gentle, still and warm? It was like this.

Well…after clearing the debris that is! Me and my car were covered with her expression… Pele’s hair in mine, tiny shards of glass and tephra between my teeth, flecks in my eyes, clothes speckled all over with her love. It was a mess. One woman had said, “I’m chewing on glass!” “Me, too!” I blurted out. “This is a first!” The only selfie I took was to share the hazard vibe with a friend, shirt tied around my face. It wasn’t until today I realized the blue made my face into the shape of a heart. 

So I shook off the remains like a dog getting out of the ocean and then put out a request for a strong rain shower as I drove. Within a few miles the skies obliged. The cleanse was so welcome and helpful. I felt the blessing of fire and water, red and blue, masculine and feminine weaving and dancing, each taking their turn. I was so grateful for the cooling rain.

The sky cleared and I drove on in a silent wonder. I was not only without words, I was mostly without thought. Everything in my awareness was lifted and suspended in the energy of the initiation. I felt like my entire being was just living that lava fountain, showering my world with red and gold light within.

It was moving toward dusk now, and the sun’s golden globe was just beginning to drop behind the ocean. The sky was soft with peach-pink clouds wafting in muted blues and grays. I’d gotten into south Kona, and the lush green felt like a huge exhale. I sank into its softness with relief after all the blazing fire and stark, harsh beauty of Kilauea.

I see that on this journey I leaned even more into deep soul listening, my own resistance, communing with guidance, the spirit of aloha, and the activation of the love fountain of light in our hearts. I discovered once again the truth that every part of the wave – the ups and the downs – are equally part of the ecstasy. Life is the whole, not just the highs.

You know those junctures where you just feel like you’ve left one world and come into another? This was one of those. Not just in the topography of the drive, but within my inner landscape and world. She birthed something new in me. I don’t fully comprehend the gifts of that yet, but they are unmistakeable and irrevocably there. It is different. I am different. And I am so infinitely grateful.

From my heart to yours – 

Christine 

(additional photos and video available on my fb account here)