Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 29, Number 6, 1 June 2012 — Beings Hawaiian men and women of worth [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Beings Hawaiian men and women of worth

A STORY O F 2 'AHA

By Kathy Muneno Pomai Bertelmann is rarely late. But on this early morning in February, on the water off Windward O'ahu, she knew she would be. Something incredible happened. Something beautiful that would set the stage for a day of enrichment and affirmation. Bertelmann and seven other women of the wa'a, the eanoe, were chanting a pule that one of them, Pua Lineoln, created about the goddess Hina and her relation to the wa'a. "We're chanting and the clouds lift and you ean see Moloka'i in plain view" like never before, Bertelmann says, adding that Moloka'i and Hina are intertwined. "Moloka'i is Hina Alana," she says, referring to the deity and mother of Moloka'i whose name is synonymous with the island. "As people of the oeean," she says, "Hina is the sunrise that looks a certain way or sunset that looks a certain way. ... Hina is growth and aeeomplishment. You start something and you're gonna see it through to the end." It's 7:48 a.m., and the women chant again before heading to their appointment - opening ceremonies for a mini 'Aha Wāhine conference at Windward Community College, actually a preview and brainstorming day for the inaugural 'Aha Wāhine Kuhinapapa conference planned for August. Bertelmann and the others arrive at 8:10a.m.,anhourand 10 minutes late. "Wāhine were already really mālie, really ealm," says Bertelmann. "We said sorry, kala mai, and they said: * You guys were where you needed to be. For you guys being wa'a practitioners, it's not about being late it's about you practicing what you do.' I really like the way that they supported, not the lateness, but our practice." "We trust that what they did out there was needed for all of us," says conference co-founder Mehanaokalā Hind. "The fact that they went out on

the wa 'a and acknowledged those elements, they benefited all of us. ... We trust eaeh other to allow eaeh other to do what's necessary for good things to happen." And that set the mood and put into practice the essence of a day dedicated to wāhine. Hind says there is a need among women to reach beyond the boundaries of their practices, to support and learn from eaeh other. "There are issues that are in the forefront of our lives today, about being mothers, leaders of our communities and being able to share our successes with others," she says. "We are survivors of just 40,000 of our people in the 1890s. We are more closely related to eaeh other than you know. To share eaeh other's successes ean only empower our families and communities and our nation." At first, Bertelmann was going to decline an invitation to speak at the conference. Like so many of us, she was busy. It was her husband who changed her mind. "He said you gotta do it; he said I've been to the 'Aha Kāne and there's something you need to talk about when you're with kāne and something that you have to talk about with wāhine." 'Aha Kāne co-founder Billy Richards agrees. "Men sometimes need to get together amongst themselves. They ean talk man talk. You ean have a bunch of guys in a room and everybody's speaking and they're being very open, and as soon as a wāhine enters the room, everything changes, big body comes out," he says with a laugh. Not only was Bertelmann happy she attended, many others are glad to finally have an 'Aha Wāhine as well, among them the three kāne who organized its predecessor 'Aha Kāne - fellow lua practitioners Umi Kai, Kamana'opono Crabbe and Richards. The first 'Aha Kāne Native Hawai-

ian Men's Health conference was held in 2006, then 2010, and will be held again in 2012, just two years later because of its popularity. Held later

this month at Windward Community College, it is so popular, it's been exported to Moloka'i and Hawai'i Island, and they have requests to

bring the conference to Washington, D.C., California, Tennessee and Texas. Clearly it has hit a nerve - and a need. "It is said often that nā kāne have basically lost their identity and kuleana with the uniheahon of the islands and the breaking of the kapu system," Kai says. "I say that is partly true and partly due to our own taking the easier ways. ... 'Aha Kāne, with emphasis on physical and mental health, teaches them what the kāne role was and should be today using their own culture as a medium." Richards adds that the emphasis is also on spiritual and family heahh, saying the men "of kahiko days were responsible individuals who took care of themselves, took care of their families, took care of the community ... and that's all we're asking of our males, to regain that, eome back to that, because our community, especially the Hawaiian community, we need you, your family needs you and, believe it or not, your wife needs you." Every 'Aha Kāne attendee is required to take a health screening followed by a consultation with a doctor. There are a variety of sessions and workshops, but one overall goal is to move toward balance. "Ancient eultures all had a better sense of nature and of balance within it and within themselves as part of nature and not the owner of it," Kai says. That includes finding the halanee between Kū and Hina. Kai explains that Kū is "the masculine, the vertical lines, upright, rigid, unbending, male forces. Hina, the horizontal lines, flexible, feminine, female forces (often being stronger than the Kū forces). Everyone has these traits within them. It is not kane versus wāhine; it is finding and admitting that we have both traits, and balancing them to be a productive and worthy person for your spouse, children, mākua, kūpuna and community."

Richards points out that "Even in (lua) fighting styles there's a Kū and a Hina. It's not always power; sometimes it's finesse and grace." He recalls, on another occasion, seeing his wife, Debbie Nakanelua-Richards, during a chant of women lua practitioners: "I watched her eome in and I thought, what a perfect balance!y^f / warrior and woman." Hind suggests that finding the ba|-( anee comes more easily for womenA"I think men struggle with it more than we do. We ean isolate ourselves and do our thing. . . . We know that we ean do everything that a man ean do, but that's not the issue. The issue is how we halanee out our family - 1 think that's our challenge." Bertelmann says: "I believe that we have the potential to be as great as we will allow ourselves to be and I think we have knowledge - Kū, Hina, Kanaloa and all the deities. I think we have all their potential inside of us." It was this kind of dialogue, in addition to specific and relevant workshops, that Bertelmann appreciated at the conference. "We had the ability to speak and ask questions. . . . you don't feel so hilahila (shy) because the kāne are there. It helped to validate what I've known, learn what I don't know, ask myself questions about what I believe." Reflecting on the 'Aha Kāne eonferences, Kai says: "The kāne that attended have expressed a change in their attitude and manners within the home, and a better sense of balance with themselves. . . . They are understanding that they need to be men of worth." For Kai, it "has inspired me to be better than I think I am. A man (or woman) of worth inspires others to do the same, and I hope to be a good example." ■

Kathy Muneno is a weekenā weather anchor anel reporter for KHON2.

'Aha Kāne 2012 Native Hawaiian Men's Health Conference WHEN: June 15-17; Friday and Saturday, 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Sunday, 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. WHERE: Windward Community College C0ST: $140 ($70 for attendees 18 years oryounger), includes meals REGISTER: ahakane.org 'Aha Wāhine Kuhinapapa WHEN: Aug. 17-18 WHERE: Leeward Community College C0ST: TBD as of this writing REGISTER: ahawahine.org, early bird registration June 1 to July 14

T0P: Awaiting opening ceremonies at 'Aha Kāne. MIDDLE: Men greet eaeh other in the traditional way. B0TT0M: Health screenings are a requirement at the men's conference. At RIGHT: Many hands make light work. Kāne participate in the traditional dry-stack method of wall building. - Courtesy photos: 'Aha Kāne

T0P: Jamee Mahealani Miller and other members of the Oueen Lili'uokalani Children's Center Kona Unit at the 'aha in February. MIDDLE: Hiehie Caceres was among the younger set at the mini 'Aha Wāhine. B0TT0M: Women in a lomilomi session learned how to use traditional Hawaiian massage with theirfamilies to reduce stress and promote relaxation - Courtesyphotos: 'Aha Wāhine