Aloha,

Here is my description of how Hawaiian Music has impacted me. I wrote it in Hawaiian, with English translation below.

Mahalo nui,

Eileen C.
Honolulu, Hawai'i



Ma ka `olelo Hawai`i:

Kekahi la, mamua aku nei, ua lohe au i ka mele Ku`u Lei Awapuhi o Olomana; ua mele mai `o Olomana me ka leo u`i. A u`i no ho`i ka olelo Hawai`i. No laila, ua ho`opa`a au i ka olelo Hawai`i i ke Kula Nui ma Manoa, no ka mea, nui ko`u makemake e maopopo na mele Hawai`i. Aka, i ka mana`o o ka po?e, kokoke pau ka olelo Hawai`i.

a`ohe po`e e olelo Hawai`i me makou, na haumana. No laila, ua ha`i mai ke kumu, e pono na haumana e ho`opa`a i na mele Hawai`i. He mea nunui ka hana o na haku mele a me na mea ho`okani pila, no ka ho`ola o ka `olelo Hawai`i.

Nui ke aloha a me ka `oli`oli a`u i `ike, no na mea ho?okani pila. I keia manawa, ho`opa`a au e pa`ani i ka pila ho?okani `oli`oli, kapa `ia o ka ukulele!

Ma ka olelo haole:

One day, years ago, I was captivated when I first heard Olomana's recording of Ku`u Lei awapuhi. The vocals were very beautiful and so was the language. It prompted me to enroll in a Hawaiian language class at UH, partly so that I could understand songs in Hawaiian. But at that time (the early 1980's, before the punana leo), people said the Hawaiian language was about to die out and it was useless to learn it.

Since we students had no one to practice speaking Hawaiian with, our kumu told us to learn songs for practice. So I studied the language in order to understand the songs, and I learned songs in order to practice the language. Musicians played a major role in helping to save the language during this dark period.

This wonderful music has brought much joy, love and beauty into my life. Now I am learning to play that joyful little instrument: the ukulele!