Far be it for me to make gender stereotypes but... I was recounting on the phone with a friend about how I am occupying some of my time here in Hawaii. I talked about my trips on the boat recording data for the Wild Dolphin Foundation and seeing pods of the incredible spinner dolphins then I progressed on to my new volunteer opportunity at Cook's Ranch where I help disabled children ride horses. As I was listening to myself, I realized that coupling this with my excitement of seeing rainbows almost daily that somehow I have morphed into a 'tweenage girl. Next I will be writing Josh with a heart instead of an "o".
But seriously, I am having such great opportunities out here. Two to three times a week, I am going out on the boat off the leeward coast in Waianae to observe the dolphins. The boat is called the Island Spirit and it is owned by Tori and Armin. They run Wild Side tours and Tori is the founder and director of the Wild Dolphin Foundation (WDF). Wainae is the part of of Oahu I wrote about earlier where the tent cities are lined up all on the beach. There are approximately 3000 people homeless in this particular area, most of who are living in tent cities.
The boat harbor is pretty modest and fairly empty. Though I often spot local fishermen (and I mean men in this case)hanging out. There is a group of salty older men who hang out most of the day talking like the coastal version of the barbershop.
Each day that I go out on the boat is truly a spiritual experience. Just the beauty of the coast around me, the amazing breeze and the sparkling water is enough, but then when I spy a humpback whale and her baby or a pod of 100 dolphins, I am reminded of the complexities of creation. The other day we saw 4 humpbacks, which are headed back to Alaska during this time of year. There was a baby which had them surface more often, we watched for 20 minutes as they breathed. Just as we were leaving, I saw one of them do what is known as a spy hop. Usually you only see their tail, their back and the spout of water from their fluke. This time, the whale lunged forward and stuck half of his upper body out of the water. I could see his large eye even though were quite a distance away. He was checking out his surroundings.
The spinner dolphins are active, playful creatures that often like to swim in the waves of the boat so I have seen them up close. I have even swam with them on my first day. Yesterday they were extremely playful, exhibiting an aerial show that demonstrates their name. They can jump up to 9 feet out of the air and will often spin up to 7 times before landing. They are gray with white bellies. Right now is mating season so lots of white bellies can be seen! These dolphins are known to be quick in doing the deed (under a minute or so) and a notoriously underendowed when it comes to other dolphins. But they make up for it in acrobatics and being highly social.
Part of what I am observing is their behavior because we want to make sure that human presence is not disturbing their rest. They are nocturnal hunters and while they do not sleep, they must rest. They shut down their sonar and head in close to the beach where there are shallow sandy bottoms so predators are less likely. So far, from 8-noon, they do not seem to be in their resting grounds, which is a bit troubling, but could be due to mating season, where males from further out in the ocean come to the Waianae coast for their version of shore leave. This could be stirring up the pods.
I photodocument and record their behaviors in writing which I then enter into a database later. Also, we are trying to identify them by photographing their dorsal fins and any noticeable scars. There are these cookie-cutter sharks (about 2 ft long) that attach themselves to the dolphins at night and swim with them. When they are finished they spin in a circle using their teeth leaving a round chunk of skin missing--hence their name. These will often leave scars that will help identify them without tagging them. You can check out the WDF at wilddolphin.org.
When I do these days, I must get up at 5:15 am because I have to take Brian to work and then I have a 45-50 minute commute ahead of me to the harbor. I try to be there between 7:00 and 7:15. I am done around 12:30.
When I get there, I help the captain, Ann or Cara and the crew, Cara or Melissa get the boat ready. We greet the tour from Wild Side--usually a dozen to 18 people. I get the job of defogging their snorkel gear. I look at this as the boat equivalent of our ancestors greeting people by washing their feet. Most of the guests have been nice, though some have treated me like a servant until they find out that I am an intern--or better yet the one lady who was really demeaning was shocked to discover that I was a rabbi on sabbatical. She changed her behavior and seemed much more appreciative of my help.
The director and I have had some interesting conversations. She told she was surprised that a religious person would want to do this internship. When I asked why, she replied that "Didn't I think the world was ending soon? Why would I care about the environment then?" I laughed as I explained for progressive religious folks the environment was a major issue. Later on she made a similar assumption when she was surprised that I had some science background. She thought that why would I take science because what I do for a living is the opposite of science. I told her that many people of faith support evolution and science. She was amazed to hear so many people from the CDC were members of the synagogue. Though by the end of the day, she asked if I would consider officiating at her daughter's wedding in May. I will let you know if that happens.
Also on religious lines, the captain Ann invited me to help with a literacy program in Waianae. She said they were reading the book of Genesis in order to teach people to read. Skeptical about using the Bible as a primer, I asked for more info. I was told that she could really use my help because the next discussion was about circumcision. LOL! Maybe I will go and help her out.
I am off to the ranch now. I will write more about the horses later.
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