In the summer of 2022, my wife and I traveled to Hawaiʻi for our honeymoon. The Big Island welcomed us with its contrasts — lush forests, black sand beaches, and, most striking of all, a landscape built by fire itself. Our visit to Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park remains one of the most unforgettable experiences of my life.
To stand within sight of those volcanic mountains is to feel both awe and humility. The ground itself whispers of ancient upheaval. Roads wind across cooled lava flows, reminders that the island is alive, constantly reshaping itself beneath our feet. The air smells faintly of sulfur in places, as if the earth still breathes through its seams.
What struck me most was the scale. Looking across those wide plains and up at the towering peaks, I was reminded of how small we really are. Human struggles feel tiny compared to the weight of mountains that rise from the sea, shaped over millennia by forces we cannot control. There is something grounding about that realization — the reminder that life is larger than our individual trials, and the world holds beauty far beyond our reach.
It also reminded me of how rare and precious such moments are. Many people will never have the chance to see Hawaiʻi’s volcanic majesty in person, to stand at the edge of a crater and feel the breath of the planet rising up from below. Photos can capture the shape of the land, but not the feeling of standing there, in silence, looking into the vastness.
Travel teaches us perspective. For me, Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park offered not only beauty but a lesson in humility and gratitude. The earth is restless, magnificent, and full of wonders waiting to be discovered. To see one of them so closely was a gift.
— Written by William Edward Villano
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