This week and last week have been the most significant of the year so far. I’m on Hawai‘i Island having an experience of ‘ike maka, diving deep into something not just by looking but by embracing it fully. This experience reminds me of Aunty Pua’s poem He Alo a he Alo. Aunty Pua said that she wrote it about her work at West Beach, navigating the negotiation of the development there. And because of her practice of coming to the middle, some folks in the Hawaiian community who didn’t believe in giving any ground were talking about her. They criticized her work and efforts to find a solution amidst difficult circumstances, although they were not involved. She began receiving death threats and even carried a gun for a time. There’s a hilarious story of her accidentally leaving her purse in Zippy’s, with a gun wrapped inside a diaper. The police were waiting for her when she returned to retrieve it. The story is funny but the threat was real.
When she first wrote this poem, she was angry. However, over time her attitude softened towards those who directed their ire and judgement at her. Aunty Pua said that over time the way she read the poem changed. I suppose life is like that, we can read things totally differently based on our context and disposition in the moment. This is such a beautiful expression of what it really takes to build beloved community.
What do you find yourself face to face with, and how do you feel yourself reacting? Which lo‘i are you digging deep these days?
He Alo Ahe Alo
He alo a he alo,
(Face to face),
That’s how you learn about what makes us weep.
He alo a he alo,
(Face to face)
That’s how you learn about what makes us feel.
What makes us work.
What makes us sing.
What makes us bitter.
What makes us fight.
What makes us laugh.
What makes us heal.
What makes us stand against the wind.
What makes us sit in the flow of power,
What makes us, us.Not from a distance,
Not from miles away,
Not from a book,
Not from an article you read;
Not from the newspaper,
Not from what somebody told you,
Not from “a reliable source”
Not from what you think,
Not from a cliff,
Not from a cave,
Not from your reality,
Not from your darkness,
Nor from your light.But,
He alo a he alo,
(Face to Face),Or else,
Pa’a kou waha (Shut tight your mouth)‘A’ohe o kahi nana o luna o ka pali;
Iho mai a lalo nei;
‘ike I ke au nui ke au iki;
He alo a he alo.
(The top of the cliff isn’t the place to look at us;
Come down here and learn of the big and little current,
Face to Face)And come and help us dig, the lo’i, deep.
Dreamt and written down a long time ago by Puanani Burgess
Mahalo a nui loa,
Dawn <3
Photo of Kīlauea taken 02/23/25