July 5th, the daylight pierces though the window of my studio. I am tired and slowly waking up from the celebrations of the 4th. Standing up from the bed it seems as if I’m walking through deep water – slow motion. This day is unique, I will be traveling from the Big Island of Hawaii to Oahu with the mission of working with a well known friend by the name of Greg Byron.
Now I’ve known Greg for a good four years, we met while I was volunteering in the mailroom at YWAM under the “Mission Builders” program. My first introduction to his focused and Godly character was when I had a task to print a few documents which were the floor plans to a tiny house. At the time I was obsessed with tiny homes and shipping containers so I was stoked to check these out and meet the owner. He is a contract builder by trade – an incredibly skilled and efficient one at that.
Four years later Greg provides a round trip ticket to Oahu. My main goal is to shoot a video and gather material for his soon to be website. I knew that there was a definite green light to go for myself, but Greg and I had been questioning the desire for Annika to tag along. Through prayer Greg had felt that there was a negative for her to join in on the trip. But I was actually receiving the opposite : “take her with you”. Just a few hours before I’m supposed to be at the airport some very loud nudges to take her with me begin to take place. One of wich was my computer turning on and playing a video clip that literally said “take her with”. Immediately afterwards Annika calls me from work asking if she would be welcome to come along on the trip. My immediate response is to tell her I would love that, following with the information that I was receiving. But no matter what she wasn’t going to join unless it was approved by Greg. A quick call to Greg I tell him the things that are taking place on my end. He is open to the idea but wants to verify this word for confirmation. He goes around the construction ground that he and his crew are at, seeking a “yes or no” from each man of God. A few ask what this question is regarding but, Greg responds with “God knows what it’s about”. Everyone on the crew receives a “yes”. Therefore the next call I recieve from Greg is the apporoval for Annika to join in on this mission. With this comes an explosion of happiness from her, a quick escape from work and a darting sprint up to her house to pack. Meanwhile I am still packing my gear. A clean and simple pack, four pairs of socks/boxers and two shirts tucked into my guitar case.
Camera back and guitar case on my person I drove to Annika’s place where she was ready to see what kind of shenanigans we could get ourselves into. Her roommate would drive with us and take my car back to the complex until our return… We cut our time too close, I miss my flight but luckily Hawaiian Airlines is generous enough to roll me over to the next flight 30 minutes later. Annika on the other hand is in a seperate terminal due to the fact that she is a university student and is able to cash in on a hefty discount for island hopping. Time flashes by and I’m walking up the ramp to the cabin door. The usual aircraft smell greets me – placed in 5f I find my seat and begin to listen to a recording that I had been working on. The trip from Kona to Honolulu is only 40 minutes or so.
Feet on the ground there is a brief gap between my arrival and Annika’s – so I jam some music in the baggage claim. Creativity and inspiration come flooding from all corners despite the monotonous rows of baggage carriers and runners. Soon enough she arrives and not too much longer after that Greg pulls up in his Toyota Sienna. In the van are two longboards and some tools. It seems as if our friendship is still as it used to be – brothers even throughout the hardship and long distances apart. He briefly stated that our first stop for the night will be at his home church near downtown Honolulu, followed by some dinner. We pull up to a nice two story home, upstairs a small group begins to build. I take a lot away from our discussions and the people around. I really appreciate how focused Greg is, he knows what he wants and how to get it. When he looked at me and asked if I was ready to go eat we both got up from the seats and said a quick goodbye. Dinner was an endless sushi bar where our orders were shot out on yellow race cars. We were all relatively quiet at the table, chewing down on some excellent sushi and chicken. Afterwards a straight shot to the Northshore in the town of Haleiwa where we would stay at gregs compound. His own house is a tiny home which he built, across the street a three story building that somewhat resembles an old western hotel by design. By the time I closed my eyes it was morning.
The first day was a relax, enjoy the scenery and seek God type of day. I was really excited to scope out the DJI drone that Greg bought a while back. Unfortunately the application asked for an update and immediately began giving me issues. Perhaps this isn’t the time to mess around with it. A lot of this day was spent sitting in prayer and in my mind. With all of the business stuff happening back on the big island it was highly refreshing to not worry about building a client list. In my head I visualize the shots that are necessary for this project. If there’s one thing that I’ve learned working in film is that visualization and planning is a major key.
There’s a local coffee shop called “The Coffee Gallery” which was practically my second home my first journey here. They have a very nice layout of the shop. Classic store front with rustic and cool faded paint wood panels arrayed all around. We decide to walk down around 2:00 to get out of the house. There was not really a strategic play for going, but it turned out to be a great few hours. Annika was posting some photos to Instagram and I took time with the good ole guitar. The breeze that flows through the North Shore is a different breed, it carries featherlite pineapple juice to your skin and brings a refreshing buzz to your life. In these moments I recall much of my time in 2014, everything I learned during those times. Now in a hurricane of matters I sit back and am now in a position to share my understanding with Annika. She’s tallented at about anything she can get into and a very fast learner. As partner in Creative Endeavors we both think it is important for her to know how to load and unload footage/photos to the computer and the basics of photo editing. I show her a few times and then give her the wheel. Right off the bat she gets the flow going. A day well spent. With a tight budget for this trip we made one trip to the local grocery for food and supplies. In and out we made our way back to the compound.
There were a few rough times on the trip – things that we had been struggling with. Going down to far into though in my own head, which leads to quiet contemplation and an on edge demeanor. Not always the best for a relationship but it is was it is – a struggle that always seems to lead to growth. One thing that happened was a major breakthrough during a worship and prayer service. The main topic was “forgiveness” and how when you have not forgiven someone the pain and resentment that builds up can eat you alive. Leading to other motives and destructive antics towards those people, especially your self. During this time I realized how much pain I had acquired from people in the last year and a half, one of which was Annika. We have been through a lot together and both knew that there were healing wounds, but in order for them to be fully healed we would have to truly release that forgiveness to Jesus. There have been anxiety attacks, pressures built up in my chest, a heavy heart and racing thoughts keeping me in a viscous cycle in lacking joy and peace. The speaker asked us all to pray with him as he led. During this time I knew what I had to do there were people’s faces flashing in my minds eye that I had to forgive in order to move forward. Once I released all of these things that I had been holding onto there was a weightlessness that arose inside me. All of my hate and anger began to fade away. It makes sense… the pressures, actions, words. Everything comes to an end without the forgiveness, the perception of those people was skewed based on the lies surrounded by hurt. It’s a lie. The hurt turns to black and then forgiveness comes and explodes to clarity. It makes me wonder – does taking the forgiveness to the person bring the healing or does taking it to Jesus actually bring the breakthrough. It’s all in the matter of the heart.
Over the next few days there were various trips to different properties that Greg had built over the years. Greg was the captain of our grand ship “The Sienna”, Annika was our resourceful logistical right hand and I was the run and gun documentor. It was a great experience to witness all of these amazing buildings that Greg is able to glorify God with. His work is a means of worship – God gave him the tools, gifts and understanding for construction/business. His mindset for the kingdom is highly inspirational and contagious. To be able to share and build the kingdom with the blessings of work is awesome.
The last day was jammed with wild amounts of driving and good conversation. Around 1pm the crew made it all the way to Waikiki for an afternoon of surf and relaxing. It felt amazing to get out in the water and catch some waves. Nothing too big, the perfect waves to ride around and for Annika to get some practice in as she’s only been out a few times. Mountain Dew and Reese’s peanut butter cups were a minor celebration. Hours were spent on the boards watching waves and locals move in and out. But as everything in our trip came to an end around 7pm. We piled back into the van and rushed to the airport. We all said our farewells until the next journey. I don’t think I’ll ever forget this trip as simple as it was. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the excitement that I saw on her face when she made it to the baggage claim where I sat playing guitar. I’ll never forget the look on my friends face when he sees his daughter through FaceTime thousands of miles away, and the sadness but strength through Christ that comes through those moments…It’s these moments that we are redefined through His glory.
We are ever changing closer to a plan that is not our own.
Until the next journey
– Arrow Ahead –