Our Lady of Seven Sorrows...

Sunday morning began with a very early morning mass at Our Lady of Seven Sorrows, a church that was originally constructed by Father Damien some 130 years ago. Father Damien, of course, is now Blessed Damien and well on his way to becoming Saint Damien. Father Damien was the famous priest who cared for the lepers of Kalaupapa.

He built several churches on Molokai, and this one has been cared for by members of the Bicoy family for generations. My grandmother prayed to Father Damien more than any other for his counsel and protection as her family looked after one of his historic churches...



Today my Uncle Fred's family regularly attends this church and look after it.

My grandparents once had a small house on the grounds and it is where they rest even today...



And thus it's the place where we all gather for mass during the family reunion, literally overflowing the church so that chairs and benches are set up outside its doors.

After mass, the family gathers to form a giant circle around the graves of Grandma and Grandpa and a few other loved ones, with my cousin Michael (who is a professional opera singer) in the middle singing Ave Maria...



On Saturday when my sister Dawn was out on a boat again, Nalani kept asking, "Daddy, where is your sister?"

These two finally caught up after mass. Nalani looks almost exactly like Dawn when she was a child...



So we headed back to the pavillion for more hanging out and playing on the beach. By the time dinner rolled around, the older boys were excited to see that hamburgers were on the menu. Kekoa, however, loved the saimin and ate the entire bowl with nothing more than his chopsticks...



Kekoa is nothing if not determined!

Alyssa would disappear for hours at a time, only to turn up playing cards with her cousins Ayla (Dathan's daughter), Rico (Dart's son) et al...



And she even tried her hand at volleyball. Here she is launching one over while playing with her cousins Danielle and Xavier...



A cheering section began to develop with Cari and the kids, along with my brother Jimmy, cousin Katie (and her daughter) and my parents...



The Bicoy Ohana Reunion weekend is coming to an end, although we still have a few more days to play on Molokai.

Cari loved the view from the condo and had us line up for a picture, complete with the Island of Lanai in the background...



As the saying goes, "Lucky You Live Hawaii."