He 'e'epa ke aloha . . .

He leo aloha iā kākou a pau e ka lehulehu! Greetings of love to you Morning Mana'o listeners. He momi kēia. I share with you this morning a precious pearl of wisdom spoken by our kūpuna. He 'e'epa ke aloha, he kula'ilua. Love is peculiar; it pushes in opposite directions. Puku'i interprets this 'ōlelo no'eau as, Love goes two ways, to love and to be loved. I like this 'ōlelo no'eau because it uses the word 'e'epa in a different way than we are probably accustomed to. Now 'e'epa has several meanings. It can mean deformed or abnormal. In Hawaiian mythology there are many references to 'e'epa, supernatural beings or humans born with extraordinary power and in unusual forms. Some were born as a plant or animal. In the mo'olelo of Kana he was born as a piece of rope. These 'e'epa have great powers and often could perform miraculous feats. An 'e'epa can also be a reference to a person who is deformed or maimed. In the story of Hi'iakaikapoliopele she greets an 'e'epa woman who has no arms or legs on the shores of Kahakuloa. On the other hand, 'e'epa can also mean peculiar and extraordinary. In this 'ōlelo no'eau 'e'epa is used to describe the peculiarity of love. We give love and we receive love. Sometimes love pushes in opposite directions. Sometimes we give love and it's not reciprocated. True love is shared, reciprocal and goes two ways - both given and received. Love can indeed be peculiar at times and love can be both exhilarating and painful. He 'e'epa ke aloha, he kula'ilua. Aloha nō, a hui hou!

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