“The ʻāina is your kūpuna…practice listening to her”

 The familiar sound of work boots trudge up worn stairs landing on the paint-chipped lanai.  “Huuuuiiii!” a call goes out announcing his arrival.  Kanoa OʻConnor enters his family’s hale after putting in a solid workday at Hoʻoulu ʻĀina.  His sturdy frame slides through the screen door as he sets down his ʻukana and heads for the shower. 

As we sit at the kitchen island, Kanoa squeezes a brew bag partially filled with ʻawa as dark, thick liquid flows from it.  He shifts his weight on the wooden stool as he continues to twist and press the linen bag through large rough hands, sharing his thoughts.  “For me an ʻāina warrior is someone protecting the land, protecting our water, protecting our oceans from development and misuse,” he says ladling the amber liquid into an ʻapu (coconut shell) and handing it to me. “Someone who has a really deep profound relationship with the land.”  

Kanoa has been an ʻāina warrior at Hoʻoulu ʻĀina for 10 years.  The program is part of Kokua Kalihi Valley – a community health center that believes the breath of the land is the life of the people.  It is known for its organic native forestry practices and is one of two forestry programs in the state that does not use pesticides to remove invasives.  Instead trees are carved into canoes, limbs are made into forest stairs, and lomi and walking sticks are shaped from small branches.  Nothing goes to waste. 

Prior to the pandemic, thousands of volunteers would come together using hands and hand tools to painstakingly clear precious kīpuka spaces.  The work now is more focused and intentional – weeding, planting, growing food and caring for the forest.  Protecting Papa – Mother Earth.

“To me, the ʻāina is your kūpuna,” he pauses as he gathers his thoughts. “So get your hands dirty, practice listening to her and the wind and the way the sun feels on your face. Learn as many names as you can and the stories that go with those names.  Let her feed you.  And then learn how to feed her.”

Kanoa is our ʻĀina Warrior of the week.  Storyteller.  Forester.  Kalo farmer.  Fierce ʻāina advocate.  Mapping wahi pana.  Cultivating sacred circles.