A Story of Rebirth from a Young Unificationist

Jennifer Pierce on a coffee plantation in Kona, Hawai’i (photo courtesy of Jennifer Pierce)

By Jennifer Pierce

Easter and spring are a time for rebirth and renewal. It’s a good reminder that I don’t have to be anything. I can bloom in my own time and in my own way. 

In 2021, I broke off an eight-year relationship. In Unificationist tradition, it was the Blessing I had “broken,” but in a colloquial understanding, it was like a long engagement. The break strained my relationships at home, and it unveiled all of the pain I had been hiding.

Suddenly, I was unable to be productive or feel competent. I wasn’t inspired by anything. It took me months to feel any excitement again. 

So, I quit my job and bought a one-way ticket to Hawai’i. A last-ditch effort to find some peace and meaning in my life.

Officially, I had gone to volunteer with Aloha Ocean Challenge, a program that provides an opportunity for young adults to experience God through fishing. I was encouraged to come earlier by the local pastor who is like an uncle to me, and I took him up on his offer. 

Photo courtesy of Kodiak Ocean Tribe

I had very seriously considered not coming back. 

Kona was such a gift to me. I felt like I had become some poster child of the Unification Movement—which I no longer wanted to be—and felt trapped. I wouldn’t say I was having a crisis of faith, but rather a crisis of self. 

But Kona was healing. She gave me once-in-a-lifetime experiences and people who gave me so much love. 

About a week after I arrived, Mauna Loa erupted for the first time in 38 years. (We were fine.) We went to see the lava flow. I felt awestruck. It was magnificent. The bright lava was surrounded by billions of stars. (Pictures do not do her justice.)

Mauna Loa eruption (photo courtesy of Jennifer Pierce)

I was looking at her and feeling understood. I had just blown up my own life, but it wasn’t a problem. Somewhere in the aftermath was new life, and it was coming.

Kona was the opposite of urban. Most of the Big Island of Hawai’i is old lava rock from the volcanoes. A small town here, a shopping mall there, a resort there, all separated by this lava rock. I loved it. The roughness, the emptiness. It was part of the island’s beauty. It showed me that my jagged parts are beautiful, too. 

Aloha Ocean Challenge group photo on lava rock (photo courtesy of Kodiak Ocean Tribe)

Being there, I realized I needed the space to be on my own.

At home, I was crumbling under the weight of trying to heal, be good, and be productive all at once. I was angry and frustrated. There was no space to feel free and learn to love the woman God created.

Kona was that space. I cried a lot in Hawai’i. I let myself be inspired and loved. I let myself feel lonely, angry, and sad. I let myself do fun things and explore. I was recreating myself. Reborn from the lava and the ocean. 

(Right) Jennifer Pierce (photo courtesy of Kodiak Ocean Tribe)

I visited Mother Moon’s property in Kona. I realized why one of her residences continues to be in Hawai’i. It’s not just the prehistoric and deeply spiritual beauty of the islands. It’s the space. The space to just – be. 

Mother Moon uses her time in Hawai’i to heal and connect with Heavenly Parent. To realign herself and refresh. To redetermine and be appreciative. 

I love Kona, Hawai’i. To me, it’ll always be my second home, my second birthplace. I hope I can be there more often in the future.

I’m stateside now. I’m not completely over everything. I still struggle. A lot. A lot more often than perhaps people who know me expect. But I feel like I have a real chance at life now.