Zip-lining in Maui

I always wanted

to fly.

Zip lining would be my way to soar.

To be free.

To spread my arms

in flight.

To feel my hair trailing wildly behind me.

In the wet, lush jungles of Maui—

where nature is Goddess and the sky is her Lover—

I found my wings.

*

Exotic birds

sing notes of silver and shrieks of brass,

the upbeat of their wings followed by gossamer tail-feathers.

I briskly follow the other hikers

through the fragrant soup of humidity and greenery:

Jungle flowers bloom on tall stalks and bow over our heads

from their tenacious hold on vines and towering trees;

Hawaiian ginger spears their bloody tips to the sky;

Dainty, prim plumerias

and vibrant yellow and pink hibiscus

blossoms in abundance.

My boots tread wearily

as we climb higher and higher to the trailhead.

*

All around me,

the sound of wildlife orchestrates

a cacophony of trills, chirps, loud buzzing,

and rustling along the forest floor.

The heavy perfume of rain and flora.

The grunting of Pua'a, foraging with tusks.

The slowly blinking eyes of a gecko.

The honking of Nene geese.

And then we are there.

*

A great chasm

stretching out below us

in a serpentining ravine.

A cascading waterfall,

as immense as David’s Goliath,

roars down the cliff.

I spot a blazing crimson I’iwi

fly like a bolt of fire against the blue backdrop.

*

The guide nimbly adjusts my harness

around my waist.

I inhale sharp and fast

as he cinches the buckle tight.

He fastens the hanging line—

like a vine from the movie Tarzan—

from the zip line above to my carabiner,

the click and sound of metallic spinning it locked as it closed.

*

The taste of adrenaline.

The rush of blood pounding in my ears.

The mad dash—

the free-falling leap—

and the line catches me like a Java Swallow

diving for rice!

I whoop and shriek

with joy,

uninhibited delight,

freedom to soar!

*

I spread my arms wide

and tilt my head back

to look at the sky.

A wide grin stretches

across my face.

I’d found

my wings!

___________________

***Postscript: In the picture, those aren't my feet-- though I did wear similar shoes on the zip-lining hike! (I could not afford real hiking boots back then)