LEO 'ELELE - TRUSTEE MESSAGES

Pauahi's Inspiration Lives On

Oz Stender Trustee, At-large

Last month, I had the privilege of attending "He Makana no Pauahi" at the Kamehameha Schools' Heritage Center in honor of our beloved Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop. Three years ago, Speech Communications instructor Todd Takahashi, with the help of 'Alohi Ae'a and Tiare Ahu, created a class in which his students would have the opportunity to write poetry that expresses what they feel in their na'au. Each poem would be presented to invited guests as they honored Pauahi just before her birthday on Dec. 19. Today, the students plan all aspects of this presentation, including the creation of the invitations and the guest list. At the end of each presentation, guests are given a gift of their writings.

Todd expresses that his greatest hope is that the na'au of his haumana will resonate within our hearts and that we will gain much from them as they have put to paper "truth" taken from their na'au. As he shares, "I think it is safe to say that our Princess is the life and inspiration of my haumana."

Mahalo, Todd, for your insight and passion; but most importantly, mahalo for sharing your students with all of us. I mua, Kamehameha! Hau'oli Makahiki Hou!

The Last
By Kara Yoshida

A civilization once stood tall.
Kamehameha, the warrior chief,
Ruled over all the islands.
The natives were superior,
      with strength,
            endurance and
                  intelligence.
Hawaiians joined hands with the gods,
Using the waters from mauka to makai,
They made the islands resourceful.
Respecting Papa and Wākea,
Hawaiians understood the patterns of the stars,
And the usefulness of the land.

A Hawaiian prodigy in its glory days soon came to an end
Missionaries took over the islands,
Changed everything about this indigenous culture,
      from the language,
            to the government.
Hawaiians weren't allowed to be Hawaiians.
Forced to the strict grammar of English and
To the practices of the western ways,
These natives lost their culture and forgot their roots.
Westerners became the dictator of the islands,
Who turned paradise into plantation fields.

Hawaiians were taken advantage of,
Lost their rights to live on their lands,
And stripped of their culture.
Westerners unjustly overthrown the Hawaiian monarchy.
The natives' hearts beating with anger rebelled,
But was deprived of their way of life.
Hawaiians had nothing,
And was robbed of everything.

As soon as the natives had figured out the puzzle,
The foreigners took away the pieces.
All they were left with was a frayed memory of something that was,
The land of the natives were stolen.
Tables turned and tornadoes started.
Hawai'i, a place that was once peaceful became a thing of the past.
How can the Hawaiians move on?

We are the last Hawaiians,
And need to stand proudly hand in hand,
To correct a hundred years of injustice.

A Dopey Cinderella Story
By Keoni Kailimai

In the beginning …
I thought it would be a fun filled journey
And then it hit me,
This is for real, no turning back
I must admit, it was TORTURE
Unbearable
Unforgivable
Undesirable
And that doesn't even begin
To skim the surface
Of my experience with this horrifying place
I'd wake in the middle of night for no reason,
Where's my family?
Where's my house?
Where's my life?
I'd cry every day
Just for a chance to have my old life back
I couldn't take it any longer,
But just before I gave up hope
The sun came out to play
I finally realized,
That this really was a fun filled journey
I just had to look a little harder for the fun part
All of a sudden,
The people got nicer
The food got better
And the word homesick was erased from my dictionary
I've come to love
This six-year journey
Of love, fear, and adrenaline
Every single day brings
Something exciting
Something worthwhile
Something new
What do you call it?
One of those
Dopey Cinderella stories?
Wanna know what I call it?
Boarding at Kamehameha.