Pūpū weuweu e Laka ē

There is no other embrace like the embrace of my mother
She who is my protector
She who is my teacher
She who is my mentor
She who is my Kumu

When I was younger I didn’t really realize what an incredible gift it is to have a mother who is also my Kumu Hula. I can still remember sitting in her halau practices, watching her teach, witnessing how she would ground the space a set the tone of every gathering. She had a way of balancing sternness and lightness - she was strict (still is) and also knew where to flow (still does).

We would meet to practice at the Waimea Middle School Cafeteria, or at the old Parker Ranch Center with that old green carpet, or the Waimea Gym, or my Grandmothers living room. Wherever we were, there was discipline and there was also a lot of laughter. I watched my Aunties and my older cousins place their hands exactly how my mom showed them. And if they didn’t, she would correct them from behind her ipu or get up to show them again.

She would give them homework assignments and ask them to print a copy out for each halau member. If someone didn’t do the assignment, they wouldn’t receive everyone else’s. Their hula binders are so thick because of the amount of research and reflections they would do.

I spent most of my childhood dancing on the side until I could dance in the line. Then when I went to high school, I wanted to experience competition hula so she allowed me the space to do that. And since moving home, we have gathered off and on - between frontlines and contested cases.

Now, I am making the full commitment to continue my training. The older I get, the more I see and feel the kuleana to learn and pass down my mothers teachings in hula and in life. I am dedicating time and space to research, to practice, and deepen my connection to each chant and dance.

Every time I practice or sit down to continue researching - I pause and give thanks to my mother, and her Kumu, and her Kumu - through the generations. They remembered, they lived, and they taught so that we could one day learn. To be embraced by that kind of love brings tears to my eyes and passion to my core to continue.

Pūpū weuweu e Laka ē

📸: @kapzphotography