Hemahema vs. Makaukau

Ke welina aloha iā kākou a pau! In today's episode of Morning Mana'o we will compare two Hawaiian words, hemahema and mākaukau. Most of us are probably familiar with the word mākaukau, so let's begin by exploring the word hemahema. Hemahema translates as ackward, clumsy, unskilled, unprepared. It can also mean inexperience, lack of skill and to not know well. We all have phases in our lives where we may feel hemahema in a particular area. As kānaka we have strengths and weaknesses. Now, the great thing is that we can work on the areas where we are hemahema and make our weaknesses become our strengths. On the other hand, mākaukau means able, competent, capable, effecient. It can also mean prepared, proficient, skilled, an expert. Two opposites, hemahema and mākaukau, yet, with hard work, diligence and perseverence, we can become mākaukau in areas we were once hemahema. As we prepare to bring in the new year we all begin to reflect on New Year's resolutions and goals for 2010. May we take the time to think about areas we feel we are hemahema and create goals that will help us to improve and become more mākaukau. Aloha nō, a hui hou.

Kaena

Aloha kakahiaka! Today's Morning Mana'o emphasizes the importance of correct pronunciaiton and spelling in Hawaiian. Let's look at two words, spelled exactly the same way, Ka'ena and Kaena. The first word has an 'okina in it, Ka'ena. The second has no 'okino, Kaena. With the exception of the 'okina they are spelled the same way, k, a, e, n, a, but they have two very different meanings. Ka'ena with the 'okina can mean the glowing, the red glow or angry, raging, enraged. Kaena without the 'okina means to brag, boast, conceited or proud. You can clearly see why it is so important to spell and pronounce Hawaiian words correctly. When I think of the word Kaena I can recall a story entitled, Nā Keiki 'Elima, The Five Children. It uses the word Kaena frequently and has a great ha'awina, lesson and is filled with loina, values. E ho'olohe mai as I share the story with you.

There once were five children who went out to spear fish. The first keiki boasted and said, "I can get a he'e." He dived down and came up with nothing. The second keiki boasted and said, "I can get an ula, lobster." He dived down and came up with nothing. The third keiki boasted and said, "I can get an uhu." He dived down and came up qith nothing. The fourth keiki boasted and said, "I can get a kala." He dived down and like the others he came up with absolutely nothing. The fifth and final keiki said nothing at all. He simply dove down into the water and when he surfaced he had nā i'a he nui, plenty of fish, all kinds. His name was Ka'imipono, ke keiki kaena 'ole, the child that didn't brag. (Nā Keiki 'Elima. Wilson, Pila. Hale Kuamo'o. 1992.)

Such a great mo'olelo with a wonderful lesson for us to learn. When we do not boast or brag, but instead are quiet and humble, we are blessed abundantly. Pipi Holo Ka'ao, let the story be told. Aloha nō, a hui hou.

Pulelehua

Welina me ke aloha e nā hoa aloha o ke kakahiaka! Welcome to Morning Mana'o. Like Oprah, I have a few favorite things. I love the silouhette of the moonlight on the ocean. I love the vastness of the mountains on a clear early morning. I love flowers, especially scented ones. I love listening to my children sing and I love butterflies. Knowing this, my son Kamahiwa wrote a song for me last Mother's Day that compares me to a beautiful butterfly or in Hawaiian a pulelehua. The words go like this -

Nani nā waiho'olu'u o ka pulelehua.
Beautiful are the colors of the butterfly.
Lele i mua, lele i hope ma Wailuku, kahi keu a ka nani.
Flying forward and backwards in Wailuku, a beautiful place.
Kū 'o ia e noho me nā pua.
And she still makes time for her flowers, her children.
Lele i mua, lele i hope, lele i uka, lele i kai.
Flying forward, flying backwards, flying in the uplands, flying near the sea.
Holoholo ka pulelehua a puni ka mokupuni 'o Maui.
The butterfly travles around the island of Maui.
U'i 'o ia ke nānā aku. Hana me ka 'olu'olu nui.
She is beautiful to look at and always very pleasant.

For Christmas, he and my other children made me a musical CD and this is the song Kamahiwa chose to record. The best Christmas gift I've ever received. A nice reminder to all to enjoy our children because time flies, they grow up and we will miss these precious moments with them. Thank you, Hiwa for my beautiful mele.

Aloha nō, a hui hou!

Po La'i E - Silent Night

Aloha Kalikimaka e nā hoa makamaka! In keeping with the Christmas spirit that's in the air let's learn the Hawaiian words to a well known Christmas hymn, Silent Night. I like looking at early translations of mele because they are not translated literally, but instead, our kūpuna used words that expressed the mana'o of the mele. Let's take a look at this mele. Silent night, Holy night. Pō la'i ē, Pō kamaha'o. But let's look closely at each word. Pō is the word for night. La'i as we have learned has multiple meanings - calm, still, quiet and tranquility. Pō la'i ē. Kamaha'o is used here to express holy but it also means wonderful, surprising, astonising and marvelous. Pō kamaha'o. Maluhia, malamalama. All is calm all is bright. Maluhia means peace, quiet and serene. Malamalama translates as light, shining, radiant. Ka makuahine aloha ē, me ke keiki hemolele ē. Round yon virgin mother and child. Makuahine is mother and the word aloha is used here to express the this was a beloved, cherished, special mother. Moe me ka maluhia lani. Sleep in heavenly peace. Moe is to sleep and maluhia lani is the heavenly peace. Moe me ka maluhia lani. A beautiful mele with so much mana'o wrapped intricately in each line. Aloha nō, a hui hou.

Pahuhopu . . . Goals for 2010

Aloha kakahiaka! Hau'oli makahiki hou. Happy New Year! As we begin this new year many of us are setting goals and making committments to make 2010 even better than last year. The word for goal is pahuhopu. As we set our pahuhopu for 2010 we can look to the wisdom of our kūpuna that help us to ho'okō, to fulfill our pahuhopu? Many 'ōlelo no'eau can give us the inspiration and direction to fufill our pahuhopu. Here are few for us to ponder:

Kūlia i ka nu'u. Strive for excellence. Do the best we can in all that we do.

Mai maka'u i ka hana, maka'u i ka moloā. Don't fear work, instead, fear laziness.

Ma ka hana ka 'ike. There is knowledge to be gained through hard work.

In addition to these words of wisdom, we can apply our cultural values to help us achieve our goals.

Ahonui, patience. Ho'omau, perseverance. Ha'aha'a, humility.

As we press forward in 2010 striving to live better, be better and do better, we can look at the many ha'awina, lessons taught to us by our ancestors to guide us along our journey. May we all be able to ho'okō our pahuhopu.

Aloha nō, a hui hou.

Polinahe

'Ano'ai e nā hoa makamaka! As we prepare for this hopenapule, weekend, we have the opportunity to hear beautiful Hawaiian music at Aloha Friday. The featured artist this weekend is Lorna Lim, one of my favorite Hawaiian female vocalists. Her latest album is called Polinahe. Let's take a look at this title, Polinahe. Poli is the Hawaiian word for bosom, breast or depression. It poetically means heart or arms, like where you hold someone in your arms. We'll use the first line of a Hawaiian classic as our example. Ma ku'u poli mai 'oe, come rest upon my bosom. Nahe comes from the word nahenahe which means soft, sweet, melodious, like music or a gentle voice. Nahenahe kēia mele. This song is sweet. It can also mean a soft, gentle breeze. Nahenahe ka makani. The wind is soft and gentle. When combined, Polinahe could mean a few things. Soft heart, gentle bosom. But when I think of Lorna Lim's musical talent and her angelic voice, it seems to mean the sweet, gentle song of the heart. So lovely when you think about it! So, friends, come and enjoy an evening of nahenahe Hawaiian music and come find out for yourself why her album is called Polinahe. For now, e nanea mai, relax and enjoy her leo nahenahe. Aloha nō, a hui hou.

Hemolele

'Ano'ai me ke aloha e ko Maui! Aloha Kalikimaka! Ahh, there's a feeling of Christmas in the air! As we welcome this holiday season it seems that we all have a little more aloha in our hearts as we try to exemplify the values of our kūpuna. This time of year reminds me of a beautiful Hawaiian word, hemolele, which means perfect, faultless, flawless. It also means holy, as in the mele Pō La'i ē or Silent night. Hemolele is used in the line that describes the baby Jesus, me ke keiki hemolele ē, the perfect, holy child. Now, perfection is something we all strive for but haven't quite reached. Hemolele can also mean pure in heart, virtue and goodness. Characteristics that are a little more attainable for us. When we look at our ancestors we see that they constantly strived for a sense of hemolele. Their work was maiau, clean and neat. They believed in po'okela, excellence and in certain areas, like religion and worship, things had to be hemolele. Now there are some things in our lives that we have control over and we can be hemolele. In school you can get a perfect report card or perfect attendance. You can be the perfect gentlemen or plan the perfect event. Whatever it may be if you put your mind to it perfection can be achieved. But more importantly, we can all strive to be more pure in heart and in our intentions. This is probably the best way we can incorporate hemolele into our lives. Tune in tomorrow as we learn the words for Silent Night in Hawaiian. Aloha nō, a hui hou.

Ma'ema'e

Aloha kakahiaka! Today's Hawaiian word is ma'ema'e. It literally means clean. Ma'ema'e ka hale. The house is clean. It also means pure, attractive, chaste and purity. Ma'ema'e kona na'au. She has a pure heart. Ma'ema'e wale nō 'o Maui. Maui is a perfect beauty. When we want someone to clean up we say ho'oma'ema'e. E ho'oma'ema'e i ka hale. Clean the house. E ho'oma'ema'e i ke ka'a. Clean the car. I love the word ma'ema'e because it speaks of a pureness that is sometimes lacking in today's world. Not just being physically clean and neat, but being pure and chaste inside, in the na'au. Have you ever met someone who radiates this in their countenance? Their lives are pure, simple and they are so joyful and content. Being ma'ema'e brings this kind of peace. Peace that comes from deep within the soul. Peace that comes from living a righteous life, doing the best you can and being ma'ema'e inside and out. We can all achieve ma'ema'e. As we strive to do good, to live pono and to make things right in our lives, we, too become ma'ema'e. Each day we can all choose to live with a little more purity in our lives. Pure intentions, pure love, pure hearts. As we live these loina that our kūpuna exemplified, we are doing our part in making our world a better place. Ma'ema'e nō. Aloha nō, a hui hou!

'Oia'i'o

Aloha kakahiaka e nā hoa aloha! Aloha Kalikimaka! Christmas greetings to you all, Morning Mana'o listeners. Today's word is 'Oia'i'o and it is one of my favorite Hawaiian words. Literally it means truth. 'O ia ka 'oia'i'o. That's the truth. 'Oia'i'o kāna 'ōlelo. What she says is true. It can also mean genuine, real, authentic. 'Oia'i'o nō kēia. This is for real. I love this word because it reminds me to be true to who I am, true to what I believe in. Sometimes we become who we think people want us to be. We live and act in a way that is socially acceptable. This can cause us to lose track of our values, virtues even the very essence of who we are. 'Oia'i'o means to live a life of honesty, integrity and truth. 'Oia'i'o comes when we can first accept ourselves for who we are - the good and the bad, our strenghts, our weakeness, our shortcomings. When we honestly accept who we are we can have realationships and interactions with others that are meaningful and genuine. Instead of hiding or covering up, we live a life of transparency and authenticity. Denial is dangerous, but the truth will truly set you free. Free to live your best life. A pure life of 'oia'i'o. Tomorrow we'll discuss the Hawaiian word for pure and purity, but today, may we all focus on living a life of 'oia'i'o. Aloha nō, a hui hou.

Lawelawe

He leo aloha kēia iā 'oukou e nā hoa makamaka! Greetings of love to you, Morning Mana'o listeners! Today's Hawaiian word to ponder and apply is lawelawe. Literally it translates as to serve, work for, administer to, tend to. In traditional times the lawelawe were the servants of the ali'i. They tended to their every need. How can we apply this mana'o to our lives today? Yesterday I watched my sons go across the street and mow the neighbor's lawn. I was really touched to see them doing an act of service. But later when I went over and visited with my neighbor I realized something even greater. Service can be rendered in so many different ways. Yes, the boys mowed the lawn and that was great, but what she needed even more was company. Someone to talk to, someone to listen, someone to laugh with. She needed to know that she wasn't forgotten and that she was loved and cared about. It was simple. A small act of service and a little conversation brought so much joy to her and her family, but even greater joy to me and my family. A little act of service can go a long way. So, my Morning Mana'o friends, let's take the challenge to be a lawelawe to someone. Put a little love in your heart and find ways this Christmas Season to share some of our time, give a little service and brighten someone's day. The world can be a better place one act of service at a time! Ke aloha nō, a hui hou!