Aloha ʽAina Kaloko-Honokohau
By Jan Wizinowich
Danny Akaka Recently there has been some huhu over the use of coral to spell out messages and names, that came up at a "talk story" session with Kahu Danny Akaka. Nā kūpuna whose birth sands are in the area felt uncomfortable with malahini rearranging the landscape.
The messages celebrate life passages, new beginnings and sad endings, mostly from people whose home is elsewhere and so they do not know the stories of this ʽaina. When visitors look at the lava fields, they see billboard space to advertise their lives.
When ancient Hawaiians traveled the King’s Highway, they left their stories in petroglyphs along the way and so the Hawaiians too had the same urge to record their stories, but their stories were part of the ʽaina and derived from the ʽaina; they were not superimposed on 'aina where they have no roots by transporting materials from one habitat to another.
While attending the Gabby Pahinui annual slack key festival on Oʽahu, I noticed a t-shirt that read: “Don’t mistake Aloha for weakness”. I think that somehow the Aloha life philosophy gets disregarded and shoved out of the way by well-intentioned people who love this place in the only way they know how. Although I have lived here for many years, I am continually learning lessons of Aloha such as inclusion, tolerance and love for the land. So in deference to Aloha, tolerance for those who feel the need to create coral messages is called for, however, Aloha works two ways; visitors need to hear the voices of the kamaʽaina, the people of this land so they can respect this beautiful culture, this beautiful place and enrich their lives with Aloha.
The messages celebrate life passages, new beginnings and sad endings, mostly from people whose home is elsewhere and so they do not know the stories of this ʽaina. When visitors look at the lava fields, they see billboard space to advertise their lives.
When ancient Hawaiians traveled the King’s Highway, they left their stories in petroglyphs along the way and so the Hawaiians too had the same urge to record their stories, but their stories were part of the ʽaina and derived from the ʽaina; they were not superimposed on 'aina where they have no roots by transporting materials from one habitat to another.
While attending the Gabby Pahinui annual slack key festival on Oʽahu, I noticed a t-shirt that read: “Don’t mistake Aloha for weakness”. I think that somehow the Aloha life philosophy gets disregarded and shoved out of the way by well-intentioned people who love this place in the only way they know how. Although I have lived here for many years, I am continually learning lessons of Aloha such as inclusion, tolerance and love for the land. So in deference to Aloha, tolerance for those who feel the need to create coral messages is called for, however, Aloha works two ways; visitors need to hear the voices of the kamaʽaina, the people of this land so they can respect this beautiful culture, this beautiful place and enrich their lives with Aloha.
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