Homespun Honolulu

King Lunalilo’s tomb was blessed with new kahili a few weeks ago as part of the King’s 175th birthday.  These kahili were beautiful new additions to replace the old ones that were not in the greatest of shape after all of these years.

Apparently the making of the new kahili was orchestrated by Paulette Nohealani Kahalepuna which says to me that these kahili were not only crafted of feathers but that they were done correctly, carefully, and beautifully.

The gentleman pictured here on the left is Kamehameha Maertens.  He is quite familiar with the kahili in King Lunalilo’s tomb.  Back in 1938 an article in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin listed him as one of the kahili bearers back then. Mr. Maertens’ grandson took him to the new kahili event to celebrate Lunalilo’s 175th birthday on January 31st at the King’s tomb on the grounds of Kawaiaha’o Church.

That, in my opinion, is certainly something worth talking about — a man revisits a part of history that he himself was a part of.  I’m not sure how many of us will be around long enough to see history repeat itself or to say we actually had a hand in it!

In the Star-Bulletin article, Kamehameha Maertens was listed incorrectly as a member of the Royal Order of Kamehameha.  His first name may have been the reason for the reporter’s confusion but he was certainly an important part of the royal procession paying tribute to the memory of a man who was once a very popular monarch.

After all of those years gone by, I can’t help but wonder if he ever dreamed that his own grandchild would push for the preservation of the Hawaiian culture through the protection, perpetuation, and restoration of its treasured language.  In case you can’t get into Facebook, here’s the meat of what’s on the other end of this link:

“After the unlawful overthrow of the Hawaiian government by white supremacists, four generations of Hawaiian people endured cultural genocide beginning in 1896 when the Hawaiian language was banned as a medium of public instruction. 30+ years have passed since the 1978 Hawai’i State Constitution nominally restored Hawaiian as an official language along with English, yet speakers of Hawaiian cannot vote using their language. Without public information readily available in Hawaiian, the current policy of English-only community services is indeed tantamount to ethnic cleansing! Will you please join with us to implement Hawai’i’s Official Languages Act to put this unfortunate era of cultural genocide against Hawaiian speaking people behind us for good?”

I’ve talked about this before and, while it is a touchy subject, most people will agree that it is a terrible thing to cut off a people from their own language.  It is a wretched behavior for a country claiming to be “civilized.”  Make no mistake about it, I’m an American and proud of it, but there are times when I just don’t know what we were thinking!  But I digress.

There are quite a few of us who missed the Hawaiian-language boat in school and are now trying to learn.  This is where Mr. Maertens’ grandson comes in.  Michael Malulani Odegaard is trying to help us do just that.  Some students are doing better than others.  I have to admit that life, as usual, gets in the way of that too.  Mahalo, Kumu, for all you do and for your infinite patience!

For those of you looking to learn ‘olelo Hawai’i or looking to brush up on your skills a little, there are small classes available on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 to 8:00 PM and Thursday evenings from 5:30 to 7:00 PM.  Follow this link for more information about the Wednesday evening class and for contact information in case you have questions.

For those who try to call it a dead language, I’m very happy to let you know that you are sadly mistaken!  It’s alive and well and getting stronger every day!

Comments left on Facebook will be copied and shared here on Homespun Honolulu so everyone will be able to listen to your thoughts and input.

So many times while headed uphill I have the uncontrollable urge to just take pictures of the mountain side — so green, so majestic.

Even with the vog it is still a beautiful sight! The foliage is always so green and the variety of trees makes it interesting.  Some of the trees are so old and regal that they add to the historic charm of this area.

Fallen Trees Can Be Fascinating

The trees, while charming, can also be very dangerous.  It is fortunate that nobody was around when this one cracked and fell!

One of those very old, and large, trees actually closed the street and made the news.  This one required some heavy equipment to move it all out of the way.

Ultimately, it required some cutting to clear it off the road.  I must admit that the pieces of this once lovely old tree held my attention and curiosity for quite some time.

What made it fall?  Wind, with what I believe was the assistance of termites.  I’m not sure what a termite-eaten tree looks like but maybe a termite expert can help us out with this.  I’ll see if I can connect with one of our friends at Terminix to fill us in with some of their knowledge.  Sounds like another post to me — I’ll keep you post-ed!

This was an interesting find while I was driving very early one morning.  A relatively smaller tree wrapped tightly by a very thick and leafy vine.  I moved what I could off the road just in time for the driver of a Mercedes to fly by on their way to work.  Whew!  I realized that I couldn’t do it by myself and called 911 (non-emergency, of course).  While I waited and watched for speeding cars, a father trying to get his kids to school came by and stopped to lend a hand.  We were able to move more of it off to the side.

It was interesting to see who would stop and help with something so small yet so obtrusive.  There is a sense of community here.  Another exercise enthusiast came by and we were able to clear away just a little bit more!

Officers finally arrived on the scene and between three or four people, we managed to drag and/or push the rest of it out of they way.  We did it!  No equipment needed.  Well, the City & County guys will have to clean the trash off the side of the road eventually I suppose.

What follows is another example of that sense of caring for the neighborhood.  I’ve been waiting for a way to share this and I think a door just opened!  This is the same street, just about a half mile down the road, different day, I walked past this gentleman standing on his car trying to clean graffiti off of a road sign.

I asked him if it was working and, yes, it was.  Passing by and thinking about it, I knew I had to turn around and get a picture!  Obviously there are others who feel the same way that I do about our little community.  Even a speed limit sign is not something we like to have defaced!  I have forgotten his name now and I can only hope that he sees this and leaves a comment to share his name with us. 

This Friday evening (yes, tonight) at 6:30 pm join supporters of Hawaii Bilingual (H2O) for the evening, artistic portion of their monthly vigil that occurs at the end of each month.  This is an event that began back in April and will continue to be observed “until an Official Languages Act similar to Canada’s and Ireland’s is adopted by the Hawai’i State Legislature, effectively confirming an end of the era of Hawaiian cultural genocide.”

Cultural genocide is a pretty strong term.  If you think about it, it’s not too far off the mark.  I was shocked to learn that people were not only forbidden to speak the language but were severely punished if they were caught doing so.  That is so, so wrong!  I don’t know all the horrific details and don’t want to know — it breaks my heart.  Take away a language and thus begins cultural disintegration.  Acknowledging that “cultural genocide” is a strong term, most will agree that it is quite accurate when you look at the bigger, historic picture.

I don’t understand this retarded occurrence in our history but I intend to support the movement to restore a very important part of our beloved culture — the language!  See the flyer here for a more detailed description of the event and the movement.

Tickets are $15 and are available at the door.  Pupu will be provided as people kick back and relax to the symphonic sounds of talented musicians hailing from our own Honolulu Symphony.  Come and share in the peace and aloha of this bilingual event.  If enough of us band together for this purpose, the State will eventually have to listen. 

Bring a chair, and your drink(s) of choice to:

Fresh Cafe
831 Queen Street
Kaka’ako, Honolulu

I think most of us tend to be curious about a place marked “National Historic Site,” especially when it has a gift shop too!  I was nosey and went in to see the little gift shop and man did I find some really cool stuff and some really cool staff willing to share their knowledge!

I discovered connections to things I had seen elsewhere, I saw books with names I recognized, and there were books about things that had already become a focus for my insatiable curiosity about the history of our home.  In future posts I’ll fill you all in as I get through the items I bought at the gift shop.

The setting of Queen Emma Summer Palace is so peaceful.  It is a piece of Hawai’i’s Royal history that sits for all to view.  All can hear that history as told by those who give guides through the summer home of one of Hawaii’s very special Queens.  Queen Emma is the queen who founded The Queen’s Medical Center which remains until today as a non-profit hospital and the trauma center of Honolulu.

While the Queen Emma Summer Palace is frequented by tour buses and visitors with inquiring minds, I just found it alluring  because of its quiet beauty and its little gift shop that held so much in store for the culturally hungry.

Another thing that was drawn to my attention by the ladies in the gift shop was something known as the Daughters of Hawai’i.  This organization “maintains and operates two palaces to promote the history and culture of Hawai’i.“  The only problem was that to officially become a “Daughter” I would have to be able to trace my family’s Hawaii residence back to years prior to 1880.   Well, I’m fairly sure about 1920 or slightly earlier but 1880 might just be a bit too far back.  But, I can still be a Calabash Cousin!

A “calabash” family member is one who has grown up around you and/or shared a close friendship with you.  Well, that fit!  So, I sent in the application and was pleasantly surprised to soon receive a welcome letter.   In the body of the letter was written,  “The “Calabash Cousins” was established in  1986 as a support group to the Daughters of Hawai’i whose mission is “to perpetuate the memory and spirit of old Hawai’i and of historic facts, and to preserve the nomenclature and correct pronunciation of the Hawaiian language.” 

Funny they should mention that!  Did I tell you guys about H2O and the recent decision by the University of Hawaii’s Board of Regents?   Such a coincidence!  See?  Now it’s my duty! 

If you have not visited the Queen Emma Summer Palace, you should add it to your to-do list.  You’ll find it an educational endeavor and one that was very worthy of your time!

Queen Emma Summer Palace
2913 Pali Hwy
Honolulu, HI 96817
Phone: (808) 595-6291

That’s Kawaiaha’o Church at the end of the rainbow in this photo.  It’s all about the angle. It might be Queen’s hospital or Honolulu Hale  at the end of that rainbow, if you were coming from a different direction, but this worked for me! It worked even better when this story about finding the iwi (bones) hit the news.  This happens so very often when new construction happens.  My initial comment when I heard about this  was, “tell me a better place to have something like this happen?!?”  This is on the Church grounds.  They have indeed found treasure at the end of that rainbow! (Just for recognition’s sake, I have included a photo of Kawaiaha’o Church below that was taken from the angle that people are most accustomed to seeing.)

Hawaiians have always believed that the power or mana of a person, their spiritual essence as it were, is in their bones (iwi).  Many Hawaiians still hold fast to this belief and many others, whether they believe it or not, recognize and respect it as a valuable part of our culture.  We will revisit this topic in a future post because I want to learn and share more about it.  I think it will help to explain some things that have puzzled me, and probably some things that have puzzled others.

Even if the traditional Hawaiian view of the significance of the iwi (bones) is not their view, most local people will take a step back, respect the significance of findings such as this, and send everything to a screeching halt!  I applaud the deference shown by our government offices and the businesses that honor this tradition.

Then I saw this and was aghast!  It was okay when they were widening Queen Street and relocated the remains of many.  Nobody complained then.  If they did, I never heard about it, or it escaped me completely.

I only know this grave stone that sits on the corner of the church property, at the intersection of Punchbowl and Queen Streets, that carries an inscription that reads:

“In memory of our beloved unknown friends of yesteryears found in unmarked graves during the excavation of Queen Street.  These 102 beloved souls are committed unto Almighty God, our Heavenly Father, and their remains tenderly laid to rest in peace in this place.”  November 20, 1988

A little church trying to enhance its ability to help and educate the community is now the target of this ugly publicity?  An article I read said that the remains of the family in question were not touched.  I’m not a party to any of this and I do not know all the details but, if this is the case and there was no damage done, all I can say is, “Auwe!“

For all of the times that something like this has happened, I can’t think of a better situation.  The families can rest assured that this matter will be handled with the greatest of care.  My heart goes out to this little church and its parishioners.  This is quite a quandary but I know that the iwi will be given the full focus and attention of the leaders and members of this historic institution.

Sending heartfelt wishes for a peaceful resolution and for God’s blessings for Kawaiaha’o Church and the treasured iwi entrusted to their loving care!

Standing alongside a group of people supporting the perpetuation of the Hawaiian language and protecting the native culture of my home feels like such an honor to me.  It is so important and such a necessary part of our cultural preservation.  Hawai’i’s is a culture that could have very easily been lost.  We have to prevent that from ever happening!  The culture is alive and we have to keep it that way!

The best part is that we’re not alone in this and we’re not just grasping at straws.  The University of Hawaii has taken a position and sees it the same way!  I almost fell over when I saw this and, while bringing me close to tears, it reinforced my resolve to support this endeavor.  Besides, I want to learn the language too! 

What follows is an excerpt from UH News that was actually published back in March.  I had not seen it until now but I was stunned as I read it — pleasantly stunned.  Check this out and be sure to focus on those bullet points:

A new paragraph, 4-1c(3), also was added to BOR [Board of Regents] policy. It states:

“The University of Hawai‘i is committed to diversity within and among all racial and ethnic groups served by public higher education in Hawai‘i. The President, working with the Chancellors, ensures the unique commitment to Native Hawaiians is fulfilled by:

• providing positive system-wide executive support in the development, implementation, and improvement of programs and services for Native Hawaiians;
• encouraging increased representation of Native Hawaiians at the University of Hawai‘i;
• supporting full participation of Native Hawaiians in all initiatives and programs of the University;
• actively soliciting consultation from the Native Hawaiian community and specifically Pūko‘a, the system-wide council of Native Hawaiian faculty, staff and students that serves as advisory to the President;
• providing for and promoting the use of the Hawaiian language within the University of Hawai‘i system
• providing a level of support for the study of Hawaiian language, culture and history within the University of Hawai‘i system that honors, perpetuates, and strengthens those disciplines into the future;
• encouraging Native Hawaiians to practice their language, culture and other aspects of their traditional customary rights throughout all University of Hawai‘i campuses and providing Hawaiian environments and facilities for such activities; and
• addressing the education needs of Native Hawaiians, the State of Hawai‘i, and the world at large, in the areas of Hawaiian language, culture and history through outreach.”

Linda Johnsrud, UH vice president for academic planning and policy said, “By clearly articulating UH’s commitment to Native Hawaiians in the mission statement, the BOR sends a message that we take our obligation seriously, and that we recognize the critical role of higher education to the quality of life of current and future generations of Hawaiians.”

OMG!  Sending a huge “Mahalo!” to the Board of Regents of the University of Hawaii for stepping up to the plate on this.  We couldn’t have asked for any better support for the continuance of such a significant undertaking.  This is such a crucial step for the restorative nature of this project.

Damn I’m proud to be a University of Hawaii alumnae!

Now we just need to work on the State of Hawaii officials to get them to recognize the need to carry this through on their end as well.

So, to do just that, the next ILINA WAI prayer service (”a Spiritual and Artistic Vigil to End the Hawaiian Cultural Genocide”) will be at Mauna ‘Ala on Friday the 29th at 6:30 a.m.   This activity continues that same evening.

Date: Friday, May 29, 2009
Time: 6:30am - 7:30am
Location: Mauna ‘Ala - Royal Mausoleum
2261 Nu’uanu Ave
Honolulu, Hawai’i

Here is a full description and more information:

What: ILINA WAI, an H2‘Ō - Hawai‘i Bilingual sponsored “Underground” Vigil to End Hawaiian Cultural Genocide until the Official Languages Act is adopted by the Hawai‘i State Legislature

When: May 29, 2009 6:30 a.m.

Where: ILINA WAI is a movable private gathering of Hawai’i Bilingual members and their friends, beginning with a 6:30 a.m. prayer & fasting vigil at Lili’uokalani’s Tomb in the Kalākaua Crypt at Mauna ‘Ala (the Royal Mausoleum).

PŌ ILINA WAI, a classical chamber music ‘aha mele will be presented bilingually promptly at 7:30 p.m. ON THE SAME DAY, when members and their guests will gather beginning at 6:00 p.m. at 3810 Maunaloa St. in Kaimukī (where free parking is available on 15th and 16th Avenues) bringing “potluck” pūpū food and drinks to share, plus a suggested $10 musicians’ honorarium (a donation is required for admission).

Please remember that ILINA WAI vigils are private, not public, events for Hawai’i Bilingual members and their friends.

Why: ILINA WAI (“underground stream”) is a Hawai‘i Bilingual sponsored monthly “underground” spiritual and artistic vigil that began on April 30, 2009 at Mauna ‘Ala (the Royal Mausoleum) and will be observed at the end of each month until an Official Languages Act similar to Canada’s and Ireland’s is adopted by the Hawai‘i State Legislature, effectively confirming an END of the era of Hawaiian cultural genocide. Cultivation of Honolulu’s bilingual creative culture is instrumental in articulating Hawai‘i Bilingual’s vision, and since members of the Honolulu Symphony (America’s oldest symphonic society west of the Mississippi River) have endured more than three months without pay, and several members have already quit, ILINA WAI will increase Hawaiian bilingual social & cultural awareness among and beyond the Hawaiian speaking community while supporting Honolulu’s professional musical society by holding monthly bilingually presented chamber music concerts.

All ILINA WAI programs will be presented bilingually in Hawai‘ian and English languages at private gatherings at the end of each month until the State Legislature adopts the Official Languages Act, confirming an end to the era of Hawaiian cultural genocide.

For more information: http://www.causes.com/h2o

It’s worth looking into and it’s a cause worth joining.  I will urge all readers who call Hawai’i home (either ethnically and/or culturally through birth) to look into this cause, take it seriously, and take it to heart!  The culture of our home is worth preserving and the language is the first treasure we need to protect.  All else will stem from that.

Come, join in, and share the aloha!  Here’s a link to RSVP your attendance! You may need to join Facebook, if you haven’t already.  I have found Facebook to be quite useful.  A lot of Twitter members and business people seem to have found it useful as well.  It’s amazing how much you can learn about what is going on around you so it will be worth joining if only just for that.  You will also be able to follow the progress of this project as it moves forward.

Here’s something different — I’ve noticed that when people are asked about their relationships they often say things like, “it’s complicated.”  Married, single, divorced?  Boy friend/girl friend?  “It’s complicated.”  If someone were to ask me about my “relationship” with my home and its people, I would have to say, “it’s complicated.” There is no question that I am very passionate about my home and there is no doubt that I love its people very deeply. But, just like we all do with members of our family, I get ticked off sometimes.  Whether it be with family or with others, we all have a tendency to fly off the handle about things before we know the full story.

Before sharing my internal grumblings with you guys, I will always try to be sure that I’m right or, as I am about to do now, I will tell you the whole story, all about how wrong I was, and how I corrected my internal strife.

Ho’oponopono is one of my favorite Hawaiian concepts. It is a way that families or groups get together to discuss their differences and resolve any issues they may be having between them. You could call it a healing process.  It’s a process that I’ve always admired and one that I took to heart many years ago.  More recently, I saw it labeled as, ”mental cleansing.”  That definition certainly works for me on this one!

So, with all of that in mind, let me share a little story. Don’t “go off” until you’ve read the whole thing!  I already did that.

Torn and Reconciled

On April 20th, I finally got to walk on the grounds of the Royal Mausoleum. I was excited and a little scared. I walked across the lawn looking at things and something suddenly made me stop and think – I couldn’t believe it. Shock and dismay left me questioning my ability to judge character.  “Why? How could they do that to them?!? How could they be so cruel?”

Let me explain.  We need to back up a little to understand this faulty thought process of mine.  It all started with a small bit of knowledge — knowledge that Kamehameha Schools removed the “Bishop” name from their own. They didn’t want a “haole name” in the name of the school. Fine. That’s your choice. Whatever. To be honest, with all of the bad publicity surrounding Bishop Estate, I would have preferred to disassociate from that as well. I shook my head and left it at that. Then I read somewhere about the love between Princess Bernice Pauahi and Charles Reed Bishop and I started to feel badly and very sad about the name thing.

Now let’s get back to the Mausoleum. Stay with me now, this is where I mix things all up in my head.

The gates are open at Mauna ‘Ala, the Royal Mausoleum, and I can go in! There’s the Queen’s burial site! There’s Queen Lili’uokalani’s resting place, the last sovereign of Hawaii. Wow, finally! Who’s next to her? John Dominis. (My mental wheels go screech!) “Huh?”

“Uh, excuse me, what’s more haole than that?”  Okay, there is Error #1.  This is also known as jumping to conclusions without thinking. Can we talk about a time line here? Hint: There is NO connection between these burials and the name of Kamehameha Schools! Moving on…

They put Charles Reed Bishop out on the lawn all by himself! Enter in my Error #2.

“Where’s his wife anyway? Probably down there with the Queen and everybody else and I just didn’t see her name,” grumble, grumble, grumble. As you can see from the picture above, this was Error #3. Bernice Pauahi’s name is with the rest of the Kamehameha family, right next to Charles out there on the lawn! (That’s the crypt that Charles built for them after she died, by the way.)

Yes there were errors but they accomplished something important — they sent me on a mission to understand what happened.  That mission has opened doors to so many things!

Elimination of the Errors

• Error #1: I had the Kamehameha School thing stuck in my brain and that was recent. Queen Lili’uokalani and Governor Dominis were interred many, many years before that! I get one slap for that one.

• Error #2: Charles Bishop was put there by his own design. One more slap for me! Kamehameha School might want to rethink the removal of the name of someone with so much caring, respect, and regard for the royal family!  Just a thought.

• Error #3: She’s right there! Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop is not only right next to Mr. Bishop’s memorial stone, his ashes were actually interred with her in the Kamehameha Crypt before it was permanently sealed! Three slaps for me!

I could not have been more wrong!  My internal dismay and whining changed into something like this:

“OMG! There she is! Charles was put where? OMG! See?!? They didn’t. They couldn’t. They wouldn’t. They could never be cruel! I knew that.”

Research, patience, and understanding leads to an internal drama successfully reconciled.  The fact that Charles’ urn  was placed on Bernice Pauahi’s casket by Prince Kuhio was just wonderful frosting on the cake for me! (Source: Mauna ‘Ala Hawai’i’s Royal Mausoleum, Last Remnant of a Lost Kingdom by Don Chapman with William Kaihe’ekai Mai’oho)  Their love was not overlooked, it was highly respected.  Ponopono = setting it straight; setting me straight!

I’m not saying that Charles was an angel.  I don’t know enough about it all, but I’ll keep digging and I’ll let you know!

SPECIAL NOTE about Kamehameha Schools: Don’t take any of this the wrong way! If I had a child, right now, with Hawaiian blood, I would do everything in my power to enroll that child in the Kamehameha Schools system. They produce fine students! I have only the highest respect for the quality of education that they provide! (It’s not their fault that I’m a mush bucket who jumps to conclusions.)

There’s so much to uncover, so much to tell — I don’t even know where to start.  The stories all link together, the history all links together, my discoveries all link together. I want so much to share — it’s so fascinating. There is so much we don’t know! Did our education system let us down. In this department I’m afraid they did. I’ll share what I find, I promise!

In the mean time, Mauna ‘Ala is a beautiful place to visit and to just sit down for a while and think.  It’s so peaceful and there is such a feeling of safety and sanctity there.  If you have not been there, you need to be sure you add it to your list of places to visit!

In Search of Restoration

As you step carefully down the narrow stairway, you well see a little plaque on your left next to the gate. You can see it in the picture to the right. On the plaque is written a short little blessing labeled the “Kawananakoa Gate Blessing.” (The Kawananakoa family is there with the Queen too!)

That little plaque reads as follows:

HARBINGERS OF ALOHA
THROUGH A BLACK LACE VEIL, SHIMMERING
UNLOCK OUR LOVE
LEST WE FORGET FROM WHENCE WE CAME

AND AS WE TOO SLIP THE SURLY BONDS OF EARTH
TO FLY WITH IWALANI
LET OUR CHILDREN JOIN HANDS HERE
TO TOUCH THE SOUL OF ALOHA

                                               August 29, 1986

It’s not all that old.  I don’t know who wrote it but it’s very beautiful, very touching, and very fitting. In a coming post, “In Search of Restoration,” I will tell you why I say it is so fitting.

For now, I just felt the need to share my little joyful moment of discovery with the World.  Readers know where my heart is. This is my home and this is our history.

Sometimes, patience is a virtue.  Sometimes falling behind in your blogging can be a blessing.  Check this out, back in January I started to write this post and then, for some reason, I thought better of it, saved it, and held off publishing it.

This is how I started:

“You have GOT to be kidding me!  What kind of a court master would recommend such a thing?  No, I’m not the only one who is reacting this way.   You’ve got to love the Honolulu Advertiser for letting people leave comments and share their opinion!

“For those who don’t know what all of the hollering is about, you might want to check out Samuel King and Randall Roth’s book, Broken Trust: Greed, Mismanagement, And Political Manipulation at America’s Largest Charitable Trust.  See, the corruption that all of us remember so vividly resurfaces whenever something as preposterous as this makes the headlines.  This horrible story made headlines across the Nation about ten or eleven years ago. 

“Let’s put it this way, Bernice Pauahi would have thrown up her hands in horror if she had witnessed these now-historical events.  Of course, she also would have thrown up her hands in horror when they removed the Bishop name from the name of the school.  So great a love should not have been dealt such a horrible blow.  Perhaps we’ll talk about that at a later date.”

As luck would have it, my blogger muse held off pursuing this story, right at that moment.  Part of what held me back was a secret hope that the trustees would do something exactly like what they’ve done!

After the courts approved their raise, the trustees opted to take a 10% cut instead.  I’m serious — they cut their own pay!

In short, the answer to the question in the title of this post is, “No, there are no hairline cracks.  The Trust was mended some time ago and the trust of the people was restored.”

What did they say about it?

“The trustees are committed to the keiki our trust exists to serve, and to the careful management of resources that will allow Kamehameha Schools to educate native Hawaiians in perpetuity.”

A historical resource like this one needs to be protected and it sounds like the trustees are taking their fiscal and fiduciary responsibilities seriously.  Mahalo and kudos to the Kamehameha Schools trustees. 

Kamehameha Schools is a fine institution that produces some very fine graduates.  The students learn the subjects that all the schools teach, of course, but they also learn the history and culture of Hawai’i to a greater degree than most.  The trustees protect and preserve the trust and its ability to educate while the students leave with the benefit and ability to protect and preserve the culture.

I have other stories that I’ve held back on and I’ll share my initial, knee-jerk reaction with you guys and then tell you why I’m glad that I held back.  Yeah, this one could have been two blog posts but I have no desire to cut people down — until I find out that I’m justified in doing so.  I did not say that I would stop being a b*tch if I’m pretty darn sure that I’m right. 

This wonderful tourist attraction has come a long way.  Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay is like swimming in a giant, salt-water aquarium.  There’s just something about snorkeling with all of those fish!

I remember the feeling, especially as a young child, of being in another world while swimming with those fish.  At that age you’re so taken by the underwater world that you forget you’re actually just floating at the surface of the water like a big fat jelly fish.   A kid’s imagination can fill volumes.

Of course, at that young age, we also thought we were immune to danger and we heeded few warnings.  We would make that trek around the rocky perimeter to get to the “toilet bowl.”  Do keep in mind that this is based on an approximately 35-year-old memory.

It wasn’t the flushing part we wanted so much, it was the fast rising to the top that was the fun part. The videos on YouTube seem to be mostly of teenagers and adults, or so it seems. I was about 8 or 9 years old (stop doing the math). Like I said, we were immune to the dangers and fearless.

This particular video had a comment with it that said, “Old stomping grounds… Can’t wait to go back!!!” and I can certainly relate to that statement. Thank you mtnbiker04 for capturing this great memory.

It was great fun to have that natural bowl of lavarock and coral throw you back up. Maybe they should have called it the “vomit bowl” or something. Okay, that name would not have been quite so attractive; “toilet bowl” is not the most attractive name either. Over the years, it seems that the waves have made the rim of the bowl smoother than it was back then.

Other things have changed, too.  When we frequented Hanauma Bay all those years ago, there was no building with all of this great educational information.  Suddenly, okay maybe not so suddenly, there’s a whole meeting room with exhibits to see and share.

This building appeared out of nowhere, it seems, and they even took the time to install this lovely ceramic-tile mural.  This is the Hanauma Bay Education Center.  Where was I?  I’ll admit that the East side of O’ahu received little to no attention from me over the 80’s and 90’s but I was a little busy with college, growing up and figuring out how to earn a living, and other boring stuff like that.

A walk through this Education Center will give you a quick lesson about a portion of the history of Hawai’i while getting a detailed history of Hanauma Bay.  There is a tremendous amount of information here that I found quite amazing.  In 1950 the City & County of Honolulu set aside $150,000 to dig up three swimming holes (I thought these were natural occurrences) and make improvements to the park which quickly became one of Honolulu’s most popular places for residents and visitors.

The next to the last picture on the right-hand side of this photo of the timeline shows some kind of blast.  No, it’s not World War II!  If you get close enought to read the text you find that it’s actually a blast to put us in contact with the rest of the world.  In 1956 a channel was blasted through Hanauma Bay for the installation of the very first transpacific telephone cable reaching from Hawai’i to California!

It sounds so destructive but it created a wonderful place for us and a very welcome environment for the most colorful fish and other marine life!  Another important tidbit of information to be found here is that Hanauma Bay became Hawai’i’s first Marine Life Conservation District in 1967.  Based on these descriptions and my own time line, I would have to say that this is the Hanauma Bay of my past.  This is the one that was created for the enjoyment of the generation that would follow — my generation.

The educational material certainly does not stop with the time line.  There are exhibits of different cultural items related to life in Hawai’i and how the ocean is so much a part of that life.  There are displays of woven fishing baskets and the hooks that were used for fishing so very long ago.  Then we get to one of the most important aspects for this venue, a great amount of detailed information about what helps make Hanauma Bay the bay what it is – coral!

The education doesn’t stop here.  The best part is that efforts have been made to further educate the public with talks, films and guest speakers.  The UH Sea Grant Hanauma Bay Education Program, managed by the University of Hawaii’s Sea Grant College Program, has put together these educational films and quest speakers to share their knowledge and information about the jobs they do.  Here is a calendar of events to help you plan your Thursday evenings.

For more information, interested parties can either call (808) 397-5840, visit the Hanauma Bay Education Program website, or ask about being added to Shawn Carrier’s email notification list.  Shawn is an Outreach Education Specialist with the UH Sea Grant Hanauma Bay Education Program and he’s always willing to add you to the list.  My experience in this area has always been good.  He’s going to love me for doing this but I think he’ll get over it.  The more people we can educate the better.

Yes, Hanauma Bay is on the map for travel guides and yes there is much to learn, protect and admire about this natural treasure.  But for life-time residents it’s part of the history of our home and, for some of us, the history of our lives.  We’ve lived part of the history of our home.  You don’t realize the significance of this kind of thing until, well, until it becomes historical.  Man, I feel old.  I told you guys to stop doing the math! 

Alexander & Baldwin rang the opening bell on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) this morning.  From what I could gather, this was to recognize the movement of their stock from the Nasdaq to the NYSE.  Now when you go to look for their stock, you’ll be looking for them under the ticker symbol, AXB.  I didn’t even know they were traded on the Nasdaq.  Consequently I didn’t know about, or pay attention to, the news that they were moving over. 

That bell on the news this morning triggered this post.  This is now a perfect time for me to talk about Matson!  I’ve been wondering for several days just how I would start talking about Matson.  I have mentioned them before, I have realized how important they are to the State of Hawaii and I have apparently added them to my internal list of companies to watch, endorse and respect.  Their owner?  You got it — Alexander & Baldwin!  I had no idea A&B owned Matson, until I did a little research.  Boy did I feel dumb!  I should have known that.

Let me give you a short recap.  First, I was so concerned about the Falls of Clyde being sunk and then I got excited when I heard that the Friends of the Falls of Clyde was stepping forward to keep the ship from going to a briny grave.  The next worry was money.  I wrote a post about sending emails to Matson, appealing, suggesting, okay begging, for their help.  Of course the Alexander & Baldwin Foundation is their charitable arm.  Like I said, I felt pretty stupid.     

Anyway, a very nice gentleman in Matson’s mainland office not only took the time to forward my emails to A&B, but he actually took the time to call me on the phone and let me know they were not ignoring me.  Suffice it to say, I was amazed and pleasantly surprised to find that an officer of such a large corporation was so patient and quite personable!

The sound of the horn on this Matson ship was so loud it made me jump right out of my skin!  It also made me jump up and grab my camera!  Just to give you some idea of the physical size of this thing, those little figures just off to the left of the middle of the ship’s deck are people.  This thing is huge!

My groceries are on that boat — maybe even Thanksgiving dinner!  :)    I did remind the gentleman from Matson to not forget our Christmas trees this year.  He chuckled and said they wouldn’t forget.  So every time you hear bells ringing this holiday season, think of Matson and the Falls of Clyde. 

Soon they will be moving the Falls of Clyde from her current location (next to the Hawaii Maritime Center adjacent to Aloha Tower) and taking her to dry land.  The intent is to repair the ship and eventually restore her back to the water for all to enjoy.  Maybe our Matson giant above will welcome the Falls of Clyde back into the water with a blast of its large horn.  Wouldn’t that be fun?!?  It wouldn’t exactly be bells but it would certainly leave our ears ringing!