“E kolo ana no ke ēwe i ke ēwe“

“The rootlets will creep toward the rootlets.”

“Of the same origin, kinfolk will seek and love each other.”

(Mary Kawena Pukuʻi, p. 39)

Diving deeper, and continuing to re-align, with part of what motivated me to start this blog, something else that I have been wanting to do is to get together with other wāhine, specifically Hawaiian mothers. I envision this group to be open to not only mothers, not only Hawaiian women, but that would be the majority of the group.

My oldest daughter is now six years old, and I still find myself wanting this type of group. More recently, I had an “AHA” moment where I think I found a common thread that could weave this all together.

I am interested in creating a space for Hawaiian moms to get together to discuss their multi-faceted lives, the multiple hats that they juggle, and everything else in between based on a cultural foundation. What cultural practices do you practice? How are we teaching our keiki our cultural practices? How has your cultural practice informed decisions in your career, or your daily life?

No laila, ʻauhea ʻoe e nā mākuahine?

(Therefore, where are these mothers?)

I hope that this space will foster important discussions that touches on many different issues of today, while also (re-)connecting us to our traditions, cultural practices, towards being our best as individuals and as a lāhui.

If you are interested, please send me your email address by commenting on this post. If you would like me to keep your identity private, let me know and I won’t publish your comment so that only I will see it.

Related to my previous post on my consulting business, I wanted to do a question and answer-type format post that would hopefully broaden the discussion in thinking more creatively and hopefully make more space for discussion and collaboration for possible solutions that push the envelope with thinking outside of the box.

And seriously, I want to hear from YOU! Comment, email, direct message me. What is your manaʻo? Let me know what you think! How can I serve you and/or your community?

These questions are common questions that I have received when I share about my budding consulting business and bridge that I hope to build to connect various pieces to move towards solutions.

Question: so what kind of consulting do you want to do?

Answer: Ultimately, I want to do consulting in the area of work that improves Native Hawaiian health. Looking at the various social determinants of health, the type of work that I’d like to do can be quite broad. Using my unique background in public health and law, I want to use these skills to improve Native Hawaiian health.

Question: what can a lawyer help a kalo farmer with?

Answer: From water rights to ensuring that they are paying their taxes correctly, there is quite a bit that a lawyer can do to support our kalo farmers and cultural practitioners. Thus far, it is has also been identified that there is an interest in writing a will to ensure that the farmer’s (or cultural practitioners alike) legacy is secured.

Question: preventative law? What is that?

Answer: my background in public health lends itself to be a compatible partner with law. Just as within a health context there is discussion of preventative health, I aim to practice preventative law. I do not see myself as a the type of attorney that is in court fighting cases. Instead, my goal is support resolution of potential issues before they reach the last resort of being battled out in the courtroom.

Question: so what about medical malpractice claims? Are you wanting to help people who got hurt working on the job?

Answer: No, I don’t anticipate doing much work in this area. Health is different than medicine. My goal is to improve Native Hawaiian health by lifting up and supporting many people and organizations already doing this type of work.

Question: have you done consulting work before?

Answer: Yes 🙂

Questions: so you’re interested in policy?

Answer: Yes, but I also recognize the importance of ensuring that policies are informed from the ground up. Communities have the answers and solutions. I see my role as ensuring that their voices are heard and represented at all levels, from an individual to a community to the policy/governmental level.

This logo was created with the help from my friend and former colleague, Randy Compton.

For over a year now, I have been working on this special project that has blossomed into an exciting opportunity for me to apply my strengths to serve my community.  I feel so fortunate and thankful to have had the experiences and opportunities that have brought me this far, and for the opportunity to dream.  How magical it is for me to culminate my prior work and educational experiences to be able to give back to those that have invested in me.

With the support of my ʻohana, prior employers, and colleagues,  I am honored to share that I have been in the process of building a consulting business.  My ultimate goal is to improve Native Hawaiian health through ʻāina justice and advocacy.  My vision is built upon my prior educational and work experiences.  Using my unique educational background in public health and law, I plan to lift up voices of cultural practitioners so that policies support, encourage, and add power to those actually doing the work on the ground.  It is important to me to not only serve individuals, but also at the community and policy levels as I know that change is needed at all levels.  Simultaneously, it is important that we not lose sight of the impacts of policies to a farmer or lomilomi practitioner.

I certainly don’t have all of the answers, but I know that I it has been over 30 years since the enactment of the Native Hawaiian Health Care Improvement Act.  But yet Native Hawaiians continue to experience health disparities.  I hope to provide a unique perspective at the intersection of public health and law.

What this kind of work looks like varies based on the different client I may be working with.  A client may be an individual, a farmer, a cultural practitioner, or another consultant who I work with on a project.  Similarly, the needs of this type of individual client varies.  As an example, as this has already been identified and echoed, individuals are wanting assistance with setting up their business.  This is something that I could help with.

At the community level, I envision working with existing organizations that are already doing important work that touches Native Hawaiian social determinants of health–education, culture, health, just to name a few.  Commonly, it has been identified that there is no shortage of work that needs to be done.  However, there is often a shortage on personnel or capacity to complete a project or projects that an organization would like to do.  This is something that I could help with.

And lastly at the policy or governmental level, I see my role as being able to ensure that policymakers are well-informed and have a clear understanding of who their policies impact.  This is something that I can help with based on my experience with individual and community-level clients.

I am continuing to learn new things everyday as things continue to evolve.  This is critical to my success to be sure to provide and best serve my community.  With that said, how can I serve you or your community?

Have something that you need help with?  Have a project that you need done, but don’t have the personnel in-house?  Message me here and let’s get to work!

As the saying goes, “necessity is the mother of innovation.”  For many years, I had all these dreams and aspirations of sewing this, that, and the other.  I would go to craft fairs and not buy many things because I would tell myself, “psh…I can make that.”  In all seriousness, the only thing that I had previously sewn was the veil for our wedding.  Nevertheless, after many years of having my mom’s sewing machine, losing the pedal to the sewing machine, getting rid of the sewing machine, accidentally buying an embroidery machine thinking it was a duo sewing/embroidery machine, I finally got my hands on a sewing machine.

But it wasn’t until a couple years of having my sewing machine did I finally put it to use.  There was always something else that I felt should take priority.  At one point it was that I didn’t want to get distracted as I was in law school.  After law school, I took the bar…multiple times.  Even while taking the bar, I didn’t want to open my sewing machine for fear of getting distracted.

Long story shorter, the time has finally come.

Interestingly, the timing may be just right as this “extra” (not really extra, it’s more so needed) income is coming just in time to support my ʻohana as our ʻohana continues to grow.  Puʻipuʻi, my sewing creations that captures the youthful essence in everyday aloha wear has been born.

 

I am so thankful to have this creative outlet, for the warm support by many, and to be able to help a little with supporting my ʻohana financially.

There is so much more that I could say about Puʻipuʻi–how I chose this name, why I am doing this, how much I enjoy it–but I’ll share those in a separate post.

If you’re not already following us, follow us on Instagram @puipuihawaii or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/puipuihawaii .

The day has come, as I have been planning and working towards this day for many years.  This passed week, I completed the last step to becoming a licensed attorney in Hawaiʻi.  Together, in front of my ʻohana, friends, former co-workers and employers, I was sworn-in as one of the newest members of the bar.

There are so many thoughts that come to mind as I tell this story.  There’s so much I want to say: where I’ve come from, how much I am really no different than anyone else who thinks that a goal may be unattainable, how difficult it really was to get to this point, advice to those who are still working towards passing the bar, those who are interested in a getting their law degree, how much kuleana I feel as an investment of Pauahi and the lāhui, and sharing what I plan to do next.

At the same time, I just want to soak this all in.  With the support of my ʻohana and friends, I did it!!!

For now, I thought I would share my remarks that I shared after being sworn-in.  Here it is:

Mahalo to my ʻohana, and friends, many of whom are here but also those who couldn’t make it today. Each one of you played a role in getting me here. You recognized something special in me, nurtured and cultivated that to get me here.

I would especially like to thank my mother, Elwen, and my keiki—Kawena, my law school baby, Kawaiola, my bar baby, and Kaʻāinaaloha, the next chapter. A special mahalo to Meghan Leialoha Au, Hanalē Bishop, and their daughter River for all that they do for our ʻohana and the lāhui. They are such an inspiration to me and have provided us with so much nourishment, in every sense of the word. And last, but not least, my dear hula sister and friend, Wendy who’s constant support got me through some of my darkest study days.

We are all here for my swearing-in ceremony, but as we celebrate my success, it is really more of a celebration of our collective efforts that got me here. The best way that I thought I could pay it forward to mahalo you all for all that you have done for me and my ʻohana, is to implement what I’ve learned by serving my community, the lāhui. The most recent iteration of how I plan to pay it forward is manifesting into a business idea of a consulting business. My consulting business will combine my educational (in both public health and law) and work experience.

Keeping this short, wanted to share my vision statement that is still a work-in-progress.

VISION

Our ancestors that discovered Hawaiʻi, the most isolated landmass within the vast Pacific Ocean, sustained a population of over 1 million. Before Hawaiʻi imported upwards of 90% of its goods, Hawaiians were healthy and strong people that were in balance with the natural resources that make Hawaiʻi unique.

I believe the community holds the answers for many of our problems. Supporting Native Hawaiian farmers and cultural practitioners will address many of the ailments that not only Hawaiians experience, but also Hawaiʻi’s general population as a whole. ʻIke kūpuna, ancestral knowledge, is key to returning to a healthy and thriving people. Supporting Native Hawaiian farmers to be able to access land and water needed to sustain their produce will ensure healthy foods for our families. Supporting cultural practitioners by institutionalizing and meeting the high consumer demand for these healing practices will address health disparities in a culturally effective way to achieve improved health outcomes.

The role of a lawyer may not always be obvious when it comes to supporting Native Hawaiian farmers and cultural practitioners, however, I am not your typical lawyer. I see my roles as improving health through ʻāina justice and advocacy. Whether the support a farmer may need is with writing a will to ensure his legacy for his family, access to land and water to ensure his livelihood, or even advocating for policies that are community-informed, that is where I come in.