Hauʻoli lā kūʻokoʻa!!! (Happy Hawaiian Independence day!) There are so many great events that occurred today, or this week, to celebrate today! I especially appreciate our community’s celebrations today because it is yet another example of how we already have sovereignty, including broader definitions of “sovereignty.”
In celebration of Lā Kūʻokoʻa, Kawena (my 2 year old daughter) and I created this ka pīʻāpā (Hawaiian alphabet) chart.
This came after lots of searching/researching for “existing” teaching tools that they sell at the store. There were multiple problems with what’s sold at the store, other than the obvious of it not being ma ka ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi. Nevertheless, it may not have all the bells and whistles like the charts sold at the store, but we had fun making it and it’ll help her learn 🙂
Also, in celebration of Lā Kūʻokoʻa, we plan to make a loving meal with these produce from Meghan Leialoha Au and Hanalē Bishop of Homestead Poi!
More broadly, creating this chart with my daughter reminded me of how my perspective and importance on planning for future generations has been forever changed. Specifically to lā kūʻokoʻa, this brings to mind what I want Hawaiʻi to look like tomorrow, ten years from now, and seven generations from now. Here’s some manaʻo (from a paper I wrote in law school):
Everyone has a roof over their heads, education is free, and no one goes hungry. Hawaiʻi is a leader in the world because of its sustainable farming practices that sustains it’s over one million person population. Farms are not only a place that sustains the people physically with food to eat, but also medicinal herbs for healing and a safe space for other cultural practices.
How did you celebrate Lā Kūʻokoʻa? What do you want Hawaiʻi (of the future) to look like?