Children Of Kosrae

Who Can Know The Maciel?

If I HAD to describe Javier Maciel i'd say that he is an open book. The only problem is... the words in this book are written in a language no human can understand. Javier is a man of few words, but when those words are spoken, controversy is ignited. For the life of me i can't explain how he creates such strong reactions within people, but he does. Regardless the reaction, everyone whether they can explain it or not, loves javier.Why is that? I don't know. You have to meet javier to truly say that you don't know him. He IS confusion. I've spent nearly five months of my life with javy (the majority of this time as his room mate) and i could ramble on and on about him for hours, the only problem is , at the end of those hours neither you nor i would know him any better. I do know this though. Javy is a kind and mild guy.He is a spiritual man. He has taught me what it means to have a passion for studying. He truly loves spiritual things. I have the utmost respect for him in this regard. He is one of the most sincere people i've ever met. He is loyal and he is honest. And when this adventure is over and we've all gone our separate ways i know that he'll be the one i miss the most. I love the guy and there is nothing i wouldn't do for him. Every experience whether happy or sad, i've shared with him. When i crawled into bed early one morning from being locked out of the office, he was the one i shared the story with first. When the mangrove crab tried to rally the troops and escape from his certain death, javier was there in the kitchen, salad tongs in hand, preparing for war. Every moment at the site and every adventure away from the site i've shared with javier. So when i leave this island in november it will be appropriate that javier and i board that plane together. Two more different people than javier and i you may never meet. I have no doubt that our lives will go in different directions once we say our goodbyes in hawaii, and that will be fine, just as long as he knows that no matter where he is i'll always be there for him. Why is that? I don't know, but i'll be there.

Bicycle

There is a very fine line between love and hate. Both words stir up strong emotions and they both trigger hidden feelings when prodded.Some thrive on love. Others love to hate.So with this brief explanation behind us I make this declaration: I LOVE this bike. When i was a young boy i used to dream of the day that i owned my own bike.I wanted a bike that had lightning bolts tattooed on the chassis.I wanted my bike to be so fast that when i was peddling down the street it felt like i was on the verge of flying. I wanted a bike that would make my classmates pause and reflect... then go home and re-write their letter to the north pole. I never owned THAT bike, but i own this one- a girls bike from japan. As far as i know, no passerby has ever been left jaw dropped and wishing that they were in my shoes. Oh people are smiling at me as i peddle by, though i've yet to figure out why. I have a light on my bike but no light(ning) bolts. It's all the things i never wanted in a bicycle, but i've never appreciated a bicycle as much as this one.It's my ride. When the air is cool outsde just before sunset, or early in the morning before the island is awake, i go for a ride and there is peace, refreshment. Every song playing through my headphones is just a little prettier than i had remembered, and all the thoughts in my head become a little clearer than the night before. And while i'm fairly sure that somewhere in japan there is a girl that is "missing" a bike very "similar" to my bike, i can't help but wonder if she would love or hate to know that somewhere on a little island in the pacific there was a boy who when he went on these rides felt transported back in time, to the days when he would peddle as hard as he could and he'd feel the wind against his face as he prepared for takeoff.