the first time i heard oli,
i went home in goosebumps unsure of what was happening.
the first time i met my best friends,
and saw my family out on the frontlines next to me,
a shiver ran through my body,
trickled down my backbone
reminding me of who I represent
sending electricity as if awakening in me
those i came from,
that of which i come from
that of which i stood for.
all the hawaiian history that i am a living manifestation of.
watch as my people stand in kāpu aloha
hear as my people oli & uwē,
feel.
they
tell
our ‘āina
to fit in this mold.
tell her she is not pretty enough,
not worthy of our love,
tell her day,
after day
to be something else.
oppress her and turn her into something she never meant to be.
aloha ‘āina
with intention,
is knowing you carry a lineage
a succession of stories
in your backbone
standing on the frontlines
no questions asked,
for the places that we call home
is assimilation in what is needed to survive
adapting to your surroundings and being above to thrive
it is inspiring others in that thirst for more knowledge.
aloha ‘āina is
a love you can
touch, see, taste, smell, hear,
a home you can miss
let your roots run deep
‘āina plentiful that when given the space to breathe,
she sings
oceans surrounding us on all sides
she is refreshing and all we ever need in healing
it’s on the calm and serene days that i feel
music playing while i hear children laughing at school
fact!
we learn science everyday outside in the environment
we learn agriculture and how to mitigate flooding
we knew sustainability before anyone told us what it was
we are the remnants of all our ancestors
we are the next wave of consciousness and enlightenment.
it’s no surprise
when some days the tears of our ‘āina sweep homes away
it’s no surprise when her foundation suddenly gives out
when the grounds shake
and the earth moves
because we have become spiders crawling down her back
and fleas eating at all that’s left of her
in a sea of corruption
our elders teach our children how to swim
and our children teach us how to paddle alongside them
but i want our future generations to not be afraid
of drowning in the tide of the future
to be left with knowledge and imagery from all their ancestors
a feeling of responsibility
that comes with a sense of pride and freedom of
where they came from
knowing that we did everything
to make sure they can float and won’t have to tread.
this
is
my
testimony
are we ready to get swimming?
Kalehua Fung was the 2022 Hawaii Youth Poet Laureate. Her Native Hawaiian culture and schooling is very important and she believes is the foundation of all her successes.