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Lahela, Makelina, Likeke and Pila
swam about the fresh water pool at the bottom of the waterfall. The cool
falls splashed down from a height of twenty feet. The sound was deafening,
but the children loved to come and swim here. Surrounding the pool were
coconut palms and tall monkey pod trees, which looked like green umbrellas
with brown handles. Purple orchids, red, white and yellow hibiscus and
many other beautiful flowers grew around the pool’s edge. Ferns grew thick
and green, as did the vines that wound their way around the tree trunks.
Likeke climbed one of the monkey pod
trees and tied a strong vine to one of the branches. Pila, the bravest,
who liked to climb trees, held onto the vine and swung back and forth. He
let go and went splashing into the pool below. "Whee!" he shouted as he
hit the water. SPLASH!
Lahela and Makelina thought it
looked like fun, so they climbed the tree and joined Likeke on the branch.
Pila shouted up to them from the pool, "You can’t swing as high as me."
Makelina held onto the vine and
swung back and forth, going higher and higher. She kicked a coconut right
off a palm. The others watched as the coconut plunged into the pool,
splashing water on everything around it. Some went into Pila’s face.
Makelina let go of the vine and dropped into the pool, sending a wave of
water over Pila. When she came up to the surface, she held the coconut in
her hand.
Lahela took her turn. She swung back
and forth, but didn’t go as high as Makelina or Pila. She let go of the
vine and fell into the pool. SPLASH! She came up laughing and dripping
with water.
While the boys and Makelina took
more turns swinging and splashing, Lahela stayed in the pool and open the
coconut that Makelina had kicked down. First she had to take it out of its
thick pod. She hit it against a rock, over and over again, until finally
she was able to pry off the fiberous, green husk, exposing the brown,
hard-shelled coconut. She hit it with a rock and it broke open. She drank
some of the milk and saved the rest for the others. Later they all sat
among the beautiful, fragrant flowers, eating the white, flaky coconut
meat. It was delicious, sweet and juicy.
Likeke thought it would be fun to
explore behind the waterfall. The others agreed. Moss grew all over the
rocks, making it slippery. They had to step carefully. They went slowly
and soon stood behind the waterfall. The sunlight made each drop of water
sparkle like diamonds, but it was also very noisy and they couldn’t hear
each other talk.
Pila found a small cave that had
been carved over many years, having water beat against the rock walls. He
spotted a small wooden tiki lying in the dirt. He picked it up and showed
the others. "Look what I found," he said. The girls were afraid of it.
Pila laughed and put it in his short’s pocket. "I’m going to make a
necklace out of it," he said as the group climbed back to the pool.
Makelina did a hula dance for them
while they finished off the last of the coconut. Lahela picked some
hibiscus petals and palm fronds and made headbands for each of them. Pila
found a vine and tore off a strand to make a necklace. He strung the tiki
on it and slipped it around his neck. When he finished, he climbed the
monkey pod tree for one last swing on the vine. He swung so high that the
vine broke and Pila plummeted down to the pool.. SPLASH! He didn’t get
hurt, but did make a very big splash.
The children took a nap on the
rocks. When they woke up they swam in the pool. Likeke liked to show off
his expert diving skills. Lahela watched him and laughed. She put a water
lily on her head and made the others laugh along with her. She looked very
funny.
The girls put on their muumuus and
the boys slipped on their flowery shirts. They headed for home. Pila wore
his tiki proudly and they all were wearing their headbands. Before they
each went to the houses, they decided that tomorrow they were going to
hunt for seashells on the beach. It had been a wonderful day for them all. |
