The Olivine Pools
The sun shinning in my face, the waves pouring
over the rocks, the people I love most having the time of their lives, you
could say the day was perfect. We were on the island of Maui, at the stunningly
beautiful Olivine Pools, a little known spot to tourists where the waves crash
into the rocky shore and create unbelievably clear pools to swim in. To get to
the peak, it’s a climb. A dirt path forms a switchback trail for us to hike. It
winds through a forest filled with different shades of green, and up to a
bridge that looks terrifying to cross. About an hour later we finally make it, and
it was all worth it. At the peak of the hill, I look out and see the most
spectacular scenery. The way the ocean sparkles in the sunlight, mixed with the
dark black lava rocks just beneath made it irresistible. Its extremely steep on
the way down as well, but there’s no time for caution, there’s too much
excitement in the air.
This wasn’t our first time, we’d been here two
years previously and loved it so much, we just had to come back. Our very first
day back in Maui, this is the place we chose to go. We arrived early in the
day, attempting to beat the rush and have the place all to ourselves. The day
started even better than the last time we’d been there, because this time we
knew exactly where to go: the biggest pool right at the edge of the cliff. The place
was almost entirely vacant when we arrived.
My dad,
my brother and I were sitting in the pool, towards the edge, where it became
very shallow and made a sort of chair for us to sit in. One moment it was
beautiful, laughing and playing in the water on an amazing summer day, the
next; the biggest wave of the day soars over the jagged rocks and is headed
straight for me, my dad, and my brother. It hits us, washing us out of the
pool. I don’t know where I am or what’s happening to me. Water fills my mouth
and my nose as I attempt to grasp for rocks to keep myself from being pulled
away. Every part of my body seems to hit something hard along the way, until
finally, my hand discovers a rock. I wait, clinging to this until it’s over. I
stop moving.
I sit up
dazed and confused, not knowing where I am, what just happened, or where anyone
else is. I look to my left, the direction I was headed, and see the edge of the
cliff maybe three feet away. I look down and see the violent waves thrashing
into the sharp rock, and start to think, was that my fate? I then look where I
came from and see my dad and brother also lying on the ground. It was so fast,
so short, that no one except those who were swept away even realized that
something had happened. The scratches all over our bodies soon get their
attention, and they rush to our aid.
The damage that day did was only skin deep. I
wasn’t traumatized from it; instead I chose to learn from it. Nature is a
powerful force that cannot be predicted, and as much as we try to control
things in our lives, every once in a while we go through an experience like
this that shows us just how little control we truly have. This lesson applies
to every aspect of life, not just when dealing with Nature. My experience in
Hawaii made me realize that there is absolutely no point in worrying about
uncontrollable situations, or trying to control them. There is no benefit to
worrying, all it does is make people stress about events that are eventually
going to play out exactly how they want, regardless of how much you worried
about it. It also taught me to not worry about the possibility of danger in
everything. Walking to class every day is dangerous, but worrying about every
single thing that could be dangerous will drive you crazy.
The ocean is its own kind of uncontrollable,
you’re taking a risk every time you enter it—but people all over the world
still do on a daily basis. Going to the Olivine Pools that day was a risk, but
one I’m so happy I took. I could have let the possibility of danger keep from
going, but worrying about what I couldn’t control would have kept me from one
of the best experiences of my life.
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