Q: My daughter went on a school field trip to Olowalu. As part of the tour, the guide told the story of the Night Walkers. For the past two weeks, she has been having night terrors. Is there a connection? A: This is a great opportunity to talk about respecting the timeline. Conscious Existence. The thinning of the veil between the physical and spiritual realms.

I’m sitting here on the beach right now. And I want to share an important truth with you…

Allow yourself to remember a time when this beach wasn’t full of tourists and condos. This beach was someone’s home. It was a village community. People were doing their daily work here. Fishing along the shoreline. Coming and going. There was a certain way of being in community, depending on the time line. How many of you have chosen to travel to a totally different place on the planet where the people have different culture, belief system, and way of behaving that what you are accustomed to? You probably got online to research or purchased a travel guide to learn all the best places to go, the appropriate customs to practice, and the inside scoop from the locals. Hopefully we pay attention to how the people interact, “When in Rome, do as the romans do.” I want to speak to this same idea.

Be aware: The spirits that committed to being guardians of this place in the distant past are still guarding this place. Their presence and promise have continued throughout time to the present.

In one instance, a Hawaiian friend shared a story with me about his daughter at this same beach. His daughter was here swimming with her school excursion, and he was at home. All of the sudden, he gets this vision. He sees his daughter and all of her classmates at the ocean, and in his vision he sees a shark. The shark was really upset. Immediately, he starts speaking with the spirit of the shark: “Please be peaceful, these are just children.” In reply, the shark tells him that his daughter is on her period. We call it Ma’i. “She should know better. This is a disrespect.” The father gets in his car, and drives to the ocean. Sure enough, there she is with all of her classmates swimming around. He’s up on the cliff looking over, and sees this shark. There are plenty of tourists on the beach and in the water as usual. The lifeguards don’t even notice it, but he can see the shark is circling.

Again he pleads with the manō-shark, “Manō, they’re just young, innocent children.”

Finally, the shark relents and swims off. Meanwhile, he goes home and waits for his daughter. When she arrives, he asks, “Are you on your Ma’i?” “No. No, dad.” “You need to tell me the truth because you put some people in danger today. And Papa had to go to bat for you.” Of course then she told him what happened. She says, “All the other girls, you know. They go in the water with their periods. They just wear a protection, or whatever.” “Yeah, but you know that these are the waters of our ancestors. That shark is an ancestor. And it’s a disrespect,” the father replied.

You have to be really mindful.

Even though, yes, in modern times, people are on the beach and they’re swimming or playing, and they just do whatever they like.

The spirits of the place are still under a different set of protocol.

Some might say, “Yeah, but we’re part of mother nature. She’s a part of us. And we’re part of mother ocean, and that’s just a natural occurrence of what goes on.” I’m in agreement with this sentiment. At the same time, I know that during certain time periods here in the islands, women in their time of the Ma’i were not allowed to go to the ocean for various reasons. These are protocols the spirit place is still working under. If you are not spiritually connected or are unaware of social factors, it’s easy to hear a story about a shark think, “Oh, it’s just a coincidence.”

But there is a lesson I want to share with you: We are not the only people that have ever been here. There are guardians in this place. We must be sure that we’re always in awareness, and being respectful.

When we go to a place, we don’t just make house. Think about it… When going to someone’s house, you would probably bring a gift. You would treat them with honor and respect. You would ring the doorbell, and wait to be invited. We all know these are common courtesies. The spirits of these places and the ancestors of these places expect to be treated with common courtesy also.

The thinning of the veil is about being in awareness.

We have this wonderful ability to enjoy – in Maui or wherever you are – these wonderful places. Be in awareness where you’re walking on the earth. There are places that are very sacred. There are places where history has transpired, battles have taken place, the passing of heroes and legends. In our history and timeline of the Hawaiian islands, during the time of chiefs, there was a hierarchy of status and power. However, prior to that time, the governing body of the village was the family unit – Everyone was on equal social standing. The people were living in harmony with the land, with the ocean, and with one another. It was a time of mutual respect, care and Aloha. We’ve gotten far away from viewing ourselves this way. Today, we tend to view our place as just a tiny space in history.

Yet, in the ike papalua – the knowledge of both the spirit realm and the earthly realm – time is running parallel without separation.

How does one show honor and respect?

1. Ho’okupu: If you are going to a sacred place, take a Ho’okupu offering.  This is a really wonderful gesture. Remember that a high offering is always ‘Awa.

2. Gift: Another appropriate gift is something from the land, like taro or sweet potato. We prepare it just as we would prepare a dish to take to a friend’s home. We wrap it in Ti leaves because Ti has crystalline properties and can be recognized in the Spirit realm.

3. Sound: You can also offer up a dance or a song or a prayer. All are a sign of respect for that place.

4. Intention: It’s always good to state who you are, what your intention is, and that you came to enjoy the beauty of the place. Express your thanks, mahalo, and desire to come in peace.

By presenting yourself in peace and respect, you’ll find that there will be a much greater opening and invitation in some of the places you travel. There is no need to suffer unintended consequences.

Going back to our question: Is there a connection between the story of the Night Walkers and the child’s night terrors?

In looking at the history of Olowalu there was a great massacre that happened and the warrior guardians of this place, Night Marchers are still be present and at their post. It’s very possible that, energetically, she was the recipient of unintended consequences of disrespect that remained in that location. Often times these consequences will fall to the the innocent – the open vessel. This is NOT about being in FEAR. This is about AWARENESS. These situations are where protection medicine can be highly beneficial. I like to make a pouch out of Ti leaf filled with salt. (Fold salt into a strip of Ti leaf, the same way you would make a little paper tabletop football.) This is not about fear. It’s about awareness. Respect.

Ask for guidance. Wait for invitation. Bring Aloha.

Just as we can travel to other countries and learn from other cultures about what is appropriate – inviting communion and releasing separation – so, too, can we interact without the illusion of separation between here and the spirit place.

We have the ability to interact with spiritual places, in sacred spaces and beings in a way that honors our timeline of Lokahi – unity. We will be granted safe passage, raise our mana through activation, receive guidance and perspective with these spaces that is not dictated by our chronological time orientation. In doing so, we are able to connect through the thin veil and heal some of the prior disrespect that has occurred over generations of time.

How you have experienced the space in between, the Ike Papalua? I would love to hear the lessons that these experiences have taught you about honor and respect. Comment or ask questions in the boxes below!