Opinions

In the Dispatch’s series with `O Hina i ka Malama, the Hawaiian language immersion program at Molokai High, I posed a new question and found that wisdom knows no age. This week’s question is: “If you could bring back a traditional Hawaiian practice to everyday life on Moloka'i what would it be?”

Kawaiola Kalipi, 16

Makemake au e a'o i ke kahea 'ana. Ua lohe au i na mo'olelo mai ko'u mau kupuna e pili ana I ko lakou lawai'a 'ana me ko lakou kupuna.

Ho'olei lakou ka 'upena I ke kai 'emi a ho'omaka e kahea i na i'a mai ke kai hohonu. Ma hope iho, piha ka 'upena I na i'a! He hana kapu a kuikawa keia a makemake au e ho'ola hou I keia hana.

Not all knowledge is learned in one house. What does that mean? Well, for me, that means that my house is different from someone else’s house, and that’s okay.

I always like to reflect on my hula life, since I am a hula person. As a haumana (student) I was given certain basic foundations and I have been fortunate to have learned hula from several kumu from different halau. Each halau, or house as I’d like to call them, have different styles.

Neither of these kumu hula have a style more correct than the other, just different, distinct, and personal to their respective hula genealogy. It’s fascinating to know that one halau can kaholo (a side step) differently from another. I’ve come to a point where I can look at a dancer’s feet and know what halau, what island, or which kumu their hula originates.

DLNR TO HOLD PUBLIC MEETING ON JET SKI USE AROUND MOLOKAI

HONOLULU – The Department of Land and Natural Resources will hold an informal public meeting on Molokai on Thursday, May 8 from 2 to 3 p.m. at the Mitchell Pauole Community Center conference room to hear from community members regarding the use of jet skis (also known as personal watercraft or PWCs) around Molokai.

In our continuing series with 'O Hina i ka Malama, the Hawaiian Language Immersion Program at Molokai High School, students play Friendly Isle planners. This is their mana`o on what ideas or creative businesses they believe would best benefit or sustain Molokai.

Ku`uleialoha Kahana-Kalua, 17

Makemake au e hahai holoholona me ka pilikia `ole. 'O kela wale no ko'u makemake. Mahalo.

Well, being a Molokai resident since I was born, I don't want anything to change; leave it as is. But what I like to do is be able to hunt legally all over the island. To bring back what we had before.

With the economic uncertainties facing Molokai, I went to the Kula Ki`e Ki`e Hawaiian Language Immersion School at Molokai High to ask the students to play Friendly Isle planners. This is their mana`o on what creative businesses and ideas they believe would best benefit Molokai.

Halelu Sibayan

Loa`a nui na mea au e makemake ai e `ike. Makemake au e `ike no `aina ho`opulapula no na po`e Hawaii no ka mea ke ho`emi nei na home no na po`e Hawaii. Ina loa`a hiki no honauna e hiki mai ana e loa`a ka home no no `ohana. Pono e malama na po`e Hawaii.

What I would like to see is more homesteads for the Hawaiian people of Molokai. I would like to see this so the Hawaiian people can have a home for their families and for future generations. We really need to care for no po`e o Hawaii.

We just returned from your beautiful island, and I feel obligated to thank you and your fellow islanders for your hospitality. This was our second visit, and certainly won't be our last. We love visiting Hawai'i, but especially Molokai because it's so real.

We stayed on the west end in a privately owned condo at Kaluakoi Villas.

We hiked up on Kalaka Rock to watch whales in the morning, and spent many hours on Popohaku Beach. We made a point to visit Kalaupapa, and met Mrs. Marks, who is a perfectly lovely woman.

We were saddened to hear about the closing of the ranch; especially as it will leave so many individuals unemployed. I do hope that everyone fares well, and I certainly support the islanders' decision to buy the land so they can determine what is done with it, if anything.

Today while driving through Ranch Camp I had the misfortune of encountering two male students of Molokai High in the midst of a physical altercation. Yes, they were “scrapping”! 

In a panic I stopped my car in the middle of the street, jumped out and tried to separate them. I gave them both an earful and sent one of them on his not so merry way. To my dismay the father of the second boy was in his garage less than 20 feet away instructing the other students to “let them fight”.

When confronted, all this person did was put blame on the other boy. All I heard was “Him, him, him! Not my boy’s fault! You don’t know!” 

By DeGray Vanderbilt

An Advertiser editorial ("Molokai residents must be vested in island future," March 28) suggested that our Molokai community needs to determine what it wants in the wake of the Molokai Ranch shutdown.

Molokai knows what it wants, and has known for a long while.

I've lived on Molokai 30 years. During that time Molokai has been consistent on the vision it sees for future generations.

This vision has been promoted in a wide range of state and county planning documents since 1980. It's a vision based on long-term sustainability and living within one's means.