Ka Wai Ola

Aloha kākou e ku‘u mau hoa heluhelu o ka pae ‘āina i aloha nui ‘ia, welina. He iwakāluakumamāwalu mau makahiki aku nei, ua ho‘omaka au e kōkua aku i ka hui ‘o Protect Kaho‘olawe ‘Ohana (PKO). He hana maika‘i kēia no‘u, no ka mea, ua hele pū au me ku‘u ‘ohana, a hānai a ulu mākou ma Kaho‘olawe. Ua a‘o pū mākou, ku‘u ‘ohana, i nā mea like ‘ole o ua mokupuni lā. Ke no‘ono‘o au i ia wā o mākou, ‘upu a‘ela nā hali‘a aloha a kulu wale ko‘u mau waimaka aloha. Ua le‘ale‘a a hohonu ka ‘ike a mākou i a‘o mai ai. Ma hope maila, ua hai ‘ia au e ke aupuni o Hawai‘i i ke ke‘ena i kapa ‘ia ‘o Kaho‘olawe Island Reserve Commission (KIRC). He limahana au ma ka ‘āina, ke kai a me ka mo‘omeheu Hawai‘i. Ua hele wāwae au i kēia mokupuni ā lewa nō.

Nui ‘ino ko‘u mau mo‘olelo e pili ana iā Kaho‘olawe. Akā, no kēia ‘atikala nei, e ha‘i mo‘olelo ana au iā ‘oukou i kekahi mo‘olelo punahele o‘u. No ia mo‘olelo, ‘a‘ole au e ho‘ohana ana i nā inoa pono‘ī o nā kānaka. No laila, eia ko mākou mau inoa kapakapa, ‘o Kumu, ‘o Lono Hilo, ‘o Lono Maui, ‘o Anakele, ‘o Kimo ka EOD (Explosive Ordinance Disposal), ‘o Mikaele ka EOD, ‘o Konahama a ‘o wau nei ‘o Kalei nō. E kapa aku au i ua mo‘olelo lā ‘o “E lele ā pō wale ho‘i.” Eia ko‘u mo‘olelo.

MH 2001. Eia lā mākou, nā kānaka ‘ōiwi Hawai‘i, ke kū nei ma nā huku ‘alaea o Hakioawa e nānā ana i ka moku pinao, he helekopa nō ia, e ha‘alele aku ana. Ua waiho ‘ia mākou ma ia ihona pali ‘ula‘ula no kekahi hana kupaianaha. Me ka ‘oia‘i‘o, ua kupaianaha kēia lā holo‘oko‘a, no ka mea, mai kinohi o ka hana ā hiki i ia manawa, na ke kanaka ‘ōiwi Hawai‘i i hana i kā mākou papahana. He aha lā ka papahana? ‘O ka mālama ‘ana i nā iwi kūpuna i puka aku mai ka lepo ‘alaea aku o Kaho‘olawe ma muli o ke kahe hewa ‘ana o ka wai ke ua nui ma laila. ‘O ka ma‘amau i ua mokupuni nei, ‘o ia ka holo wale o ka lepo he nui mai uka ā i kai i ka ua nui, no ka mea, ua nele i ka lawa ‘ole o ka lau nahele. Pēlā i ‘ō‘īli mai ai kēia mau iwi.

Photo: Kaho‘olawe
Kaho‘olawe. – Ki‘i: Kalei Nu‘uhiwa

‘Elua mahina ma mua aku, ua loa‘a maila nā iwi kūpuna i nā kānaka ana ‘āina. I ko lāua hele wāwae ‘ana, ua ‘ike akula lāua i nā mea ke‘oke‘o e malele ana ma ka lepo ‘ula‘ula. A, ua loa‘a nō iā lāua kekahi mau iwi ‘ē a‘e ma ‘ekolu mau wahi ‘ē a‘e. E like me kā ke kānāwai aupuni i kuhikuhi ai, ua kāhea maila lāua ia‘u, no ka mea, ‘o ia kekahi kuleana o‘u, a ua kāhea lākou i kekahi mau mea nīele i ke au i hala (mea hulikoehana) e hō‘ike mai iā mākou i nā iwi i loa‘a maila. A ua ‘āpono ‘ia e mākou he mau iwi kūpuna nō ia.

No laila, kelepona akula au iā KIRC a me ka PKO e kama‘ilio i ka hana kūpono e hana ai, a ua kelepona aku ka mea nīele i ke au i hala i nā alaka‘i o ka ‘Oihana Moku a me ka ‘Ahahuina Ho‘oma‘ema‘e Pōkā Pahū. Ma hope o kekahi mau hālāwai a ho‘olaha ma ka nūpepa e ‘imi i nā ‘ohana e like me kā ke kuhina o nā kānāwai aupuni i kauoha ai, ua ho‘oholo ka mana‘o o nā kānaka ‘ōiwi ma ia mau hui e kanu hou i ua mau iwi kūpuna lā ma kahi ho‘okahi.

‘O ka mea kupaianaha, na kekahi mau kānaka Hawai‘i o ka ‘Ahahuina Ho‘oma‘ema‘e Pōkā Pahū, ka ‘Oihana Moku, nā pailaka o ka moku pinao, ‘o KIRC a me nā Mo‘olono o ka PKO i ‘ae like e mālama pono i ua mau iwi kūpuna nei. ‘O ka ma‘amau ma mua, ‘a‘ole i noi iki ‘ia nā ‘ōiwi Hawai‘i no ko mākou mana‘o. Akā, ma ia papahana nō, ua hiki i nā ‘ōiwi Hawai‘i ke alaka‘i a kuhikuhi aku i nā hana kūpono e hana ai. He mea nui kēia ma ia wā o ka ho‘oma‘ema‘e ‘ana i nā pōkā pahū ma Kaho‘olawe. ‘O ka mālama kūpuna ka hana na ka Hawai‘i, no ka Hawai‘i. A, ua kāko‘o nō nā hui like ‘ole a komo koke i ia papahana e mālama i nā kūpuna. No laila, ua koho mākou i ka pō kūpono e hu‘e a kanu hou ai i nā iwi.

E ka mea heluhelu, ‘oko‘a ka hana ma Kaho‘olawe. ‘A‘ole hiki ke ‘eli wale ma nā wahi like ‘ole i laila ma muli o nā pōkā pahū a tōpito i pehi ‘ino ‘ia ma laila. No laila, eia kā mākou hana:

  1. Koho i kahi kūpono e kanu ai i nā iwi.
  2. Lawe mai i kekahi mīkini ‘imi keleawe no ka ‘ula‘a aku i nā keleawe ‘ino.
  3. Na ka EOD (he loea ma nā ‘ano pōkā pahū like ‘ole) e ‘eli i ka lua pao.
  4. Lawe mai i nā pōhaku pālaha mai kapakai mai no ke pani ‘ana i ka lua pao.
  5. Pani i ka lua me ke kapolena a ho‘omākaukau i nā mea ‘ē a‘e. He hana nui nō ia.

Ma ke kakahiaka o Akua, ua hui pū mākou ‘ehiku, ‘o Lono Hilo, ‘o Lono Maui, ‘o Kumu, ‘o Anakele, ‘o au, ‘o kekahi EOD, ‘o Mikaele kona inoa, a me kekahi mea nīele i ke au i hala, ‘o Konahama kona inoa. ‘O Konahama ka haole ho‘okahi ma ia huina kānaka koko Hawai‘i. Halihali ‘ia mākou e ka moku pinao mai Maui ā i ka lua pao mua e hana i nā ha‘awina ho‘omana a hu‘e a‘ela i ke kupuna mua. A pau kā mākou hana ma laila, halihali hou ‘ia mākou e ka moku pinao, a lele mākou i ka lua ‘ē a‘e e hana hou i kā mākou hana. A pau kā mākou hana ma laila, halihali hou ‘ia aku mākou e ka moku pinao, a lele mākou i ka lua hope loa e hana hou i kā mākou hana.

I ka pau ‘ana o ia mau hana ma ia lua pao nei, ua ne‘e mākou ma kahi o ka lua pao hou i ‘eli a ho‘omākaukau ‘ia. Hāpai a‘ela i nā pū‘olo hiwahiwa i ho‘okomo ‘ia ma nā pahu lau hala i nala ‘ia e nā loea nala lau hala o Maui. Ua kō nō kā mākou mau hana ā pau ma ia lā, a ua pono mākou e kali ā pō ke ao no ka hana ‘ana i nā ha‘awina hope loa, ‘o ia ke kanu ‘ana i nā pū‘olo. (‘A‘ole i pau. E heluhelu i kekahi pukana o Ka Wai Ola e ‘ike ai i ka panina o kēia papahana kupaianaha e ho‘iho‘i ‘ia ai nā iwi kūpuna ma Kaho‘olawe.)

No laila, ma ka hola ‘elima o ke ahiahi, ua kū hou mai ka moku pinao e lawe aku iā Konahama a me Mikaele ka EOD e ho‘i aku i Maui. Ua hui pū ‘o Kimo ka EOD me mākou, no ka mea, ‘a‘ole hiki ke ‘eli i ka lua ma Kaho‘olawe me ka EOD ‘ole. No laila, eia mākou ‘eono ma Kaho‘olawe e kali ana ā napo‘o ka lā.

I ka napo‘o ‘ana iho o ka lā, ua hā‘ula‘ula nā ao like ‘ole i ka lani. Kū kilakila ka mauna ‘o Haleakalā i mua o mākou. Waiho kāhelahela ‘ia nā awāwa like ‘ole o Mauna Kahālāwai. Ua nani nō. Ma ia manawa nō, ua ho‘omākaukau ‘ia nā pono hana e mākou me ka mū o ka waha. ‘A‘ohe kani, ‘a‘ohe wī, ‘a‘ohe wā. ‘O ka hinihini o ke kai e ahe mālie ana, ‘o ia wale nō kai lohe iki ‘ia akula. Kohu mea ala, e ho‘omākaukau pū ana nā akua no kā mākou hana kūikawā.

Ma ke ano ahiahi, i ka puka ‘ana aku o nā hōkū e pa‘a pono ana i ka ‘ili lani o ka pō, ua ho‘omaka mākou. I ka mālie o ka pō, ua ho‘iho‘i ‘ia nō nā kūpuna i ka honua, ma ko lākou wahi ho‘omaha hou. Ua pani ‘ia ka lua i ka manawa ho‘okahi i pi‘i a‘ela ka mahina i ka pō o Hoku i luna o ka pu‘u ‘iu‘iu o Haleakalā. Ua kūpono nō, e ka mea heluhelu.

Ma hope maila, ua inu mākou i ka ‘awa a ho‘ola‘a aku i nā ‘apu ā pau no nā kānaka i kāko‘o mai iā mākou i kā mākou hana. Ua ho‘ola‘a ‘ia kekahi o nā ‘apu no George Helm lāua ‘o Kimo Mitchell pū. A pau ka inu ‘awa ‘ana, ua kū mai ka moku pinao e ki‘i a ho‘iho‘i iā mākou i Maui. Ua pono ka pailaka e komo i nā makaaniani kupanaha i mea e ‘ike le‘a ai ma ka pōuliuli. Iā mākou e ho‘i ana i Maui, ua lele mākou i nā hōkū e ‘imo‘imo ana a me ka mahina i ka pō o Hoku e ho‘omā‘ama‘ama maila. Kohu mea ala, ‘a‘ole au e kau ana ma ka moku pinao. E lana ana au ma ka pō wale ho‘i. ‘A‘ole loa au e poina ana i ia papahana kamaha‘o nō ma Kaho‘olawe.

‘ā ‘oia. Ua pau nō ho‘i kēia mo‘olelo o Kaho‘olawe. Malia paha, o ha‘i aku au iā ‘oukou e pili ana i ka manawa a‘u i launa pū ai me ka ‘īlioholoikauaua, akā, no kekahi pukana nūpepa a‘e paha ia.