Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 10, Number 8, 1 August 1993 — E ʻai ʻoe i ka poi (Eat poi!) [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

E ʻai ʻoe i ka poi (Eat poi!)

na Manu Boyd, OHA Culture Specialist

No kākou ka welina o ke aloha, e nā mamo hiwahiwa a Hāloa, aloha mai! Ua laki maoli nō 'o ko kēia pae'āina i ka nui o nā mea 'ai 'ono like 'ole no ka nui o ka po'e mai nā 'āina mamao e noho nei ma Hawai'i nei. E hiki iā kākou ke 'ai i ka mea 'ai Pākē, Kepanl, Italia a pēlā aku. Keu ka 'ono, 'eā! Akā, 'o ka mea 'ai mēheuheu o ka 'āina nei, 'o ia nō ka 'ai 'ono loa. He aha lā ka mea 'ai nui a ka Hawai'i? A he aha lā ka mea 'ai punahele a nā kūpuna? 'O ka poi a me ke kalo nō ho'i ia. 'O ke kalo, he kupuna kahiko a kākou nei apau, nā Hawai'i, ma muli o ka noho pū 'ana a nā akua, 'o Wākea lāua me Ho'ohōkūkalani, nāna nō i hānau i kāna keiki 'alu'alu, akā, ua make na'e ke keiki i kona 'ō'ili 'ana mai. No ia mea, ua kanu nā mākua i kā lāua keiki make ma ke kihi hikina o ka pā hale a i mau lā ma hope aku nei, ua kupu maila kekahi 'ano lā'au 'ē, 'o ia nō ke kalo. 'O Hā-loa-lau-kapalili ka inoa o ua lā'au, ke kalo mua loa, no ka loa 0 kona hā, a me ke kapalili o kona lau. I ka hānau 'ana mai 'o Ho'ohōkūkalani i kāna keiki a'e, ua ola 'o ia, a kapa 'ia ka inoa 'o "Hāloa" ma luna ona. 'O Hāloa 'elua ke kanaka mua o ke ao nei, a he keiki nō ho'i a nā akua, a he kupuna 'o ia no ka lāhui Hawai'i. Ua kanu 'ia ke kalo i loko o nā lo'i, 'o ia he māla i ho'opiha 'ia me ka wai mai nā kahawai mai. 'O ka 'elua o nā kalo, ua kanu 'ia 1 loko o ka honua, 'o ia ke kalo malo'o. Ua ho'omau 'ia nei nā 'ano o ka mahi kalo 'ana e like me ia i hana 'ia i ka wā kahiko. He nui nā 'ano kalo ma Hawai'i, he mau haneli paha. 'O ka Uahi-a-Pele, 'o ka Lxhua, 'o ka Pi'iali'i, 'o ka Pā'ū-o-Hi'iaka, a 'o ka 'Elepaio kekahi mau inoa o nā 'ano kalo kaulana ma Hawai'i nei. Ua hana 'ia ka poi ma ke ku'i 'ana i ke kalo i mo'a mua 'ia a palupalu iki. Ua wa'u 'ia ka 'ili, a ku'iku'i 'ia aku me ka pōhaku ku'i 'ai. (I kēia mau lā, loa'a ka mikini wili poi no ia hana.) Lilo ke kalo i palupalu no ke ku'i 'ana a me ka ho'okomo 'ana i ka wai i loko, a lawa ka makemake. Inā he poi 'ano pa'a, a he 'ole, a i 'ole he li'ili'i wale nō ka wai i ho'owili 'ia i loko, he "pa'i'ai" kēlā. 'A'ole au he kanaka mahi kalo, a 'a'ole au he kanaka ku'i poi. Akā, he kanaka Hawai'i au a he mamo na Hāloa me kon'a kaikua'ana, ke kalo, nona ku'u mahalo ho'ohanohano nei. No laila, e 'ai kākou i ka poi, no ka pono o ka noho 'ana. E ho'omana'o mau i ke kuleana a kākou, ka hāpai a ho'omau 'ana i ko kākou ho'oilina. 'O kekahi o nā mea e koe aku, 'o ka 'oi nō paha ia. E aloha kākou, kekahi i kekahi, a e hana like nō. Aloha kākou!

Greetings to you, the esteemed descendants of Hāloa, aloha. We are lucky here in Hawai'i to have so many delicious foods to partake of, brought by the many people from far-off lands who eall Hawai'i home. Be it Japanese food, Chinese, Italian or whatever, it's delicious. However, it is the traditional food of our people that is the most 'ono. What do you think the main food for our Hawaiian people is? What would've been the favorite food of our ancestors? Taro and poi of course. The taro is considered a kupuna of Hawaiians, as a result of the union of the gods Wākea (Sky Father) and Ho'ohōkūkalani, who gave birth prematurely to a child who emerged stillborn. For this reason, the divine parents buried their child in the eastern corner of their land. Days later from that very spot, an unusual plant, taro as we know it, sprouted forth. The plant was called Hāloalaukapalili because of its long stock (hā loa) and trembling leaf (lau kapalili). When Ho'ohōkūkalani gave birth to their next child, he was blessed with life, and was given the name Hāloa. Hāloa, the second, was the first human being on earth, born to the gods. Hāloa, the progenitor of the Hawaiian race. Taro is planted in lo'i kalo, a

kind of garden that is submerged in water irrigated from a nearby stream. Another type of taro, planted in the earth, is referred to as the "dry land" variety. The old ways of farming taro continue to this very day. There are many types of taro in Hawai'i - hundreds, actually. The Uahiapele, Lehua, Pi'iali'i, Pā'ūohi'iaka and 'Elepaio are but a few of the well-known specimens in Hawai'i today. Poi is pounded from taro that is first cooked until soft. The skin is scraped of, after whieh the pounding commences. (Today, we have poi mills that handle this process.) The poi becomes thinner by adding water while pounding. If poi is pounded using little or no water, it is called "pa'i'ai." I am not a taro farmer, nor am I a pounder of poi. But I am Hawaiian, and therefore a descendant of Hāloa and his older brother, the taro, for whom is my admiration and respect. So let's all eat poi for the good of it! We must continue our responsibility of uplifting our cultural practices, our legacy. One other thing, and perhaps this is the most important. That is that we must have aloha and respect for another, and work harmoniously. Aloha to all!