October 7, 2020

“It’s all about allowing the land to heal us”

Part 2.

Aunty Joan Takamori carefully weeds around the stone ʻahu in front of the hale.  As morning light falls gently on her faded ʻalaea-colored tee shirt and lovingly wraps around her body, she reaches for a garden tool to remove an uninvited weed.

Aunty Joan grew up with lāʻau (medicinal herbs) and always believed in the power of plants.  As a nurse trained in public health and oncology, she saw the value in blending western medicine with lāʻau practices she learned from home and her time spent at Hoʻoulu Āina.

Her belief system was recently challenged when she was diagnosed with lymphoma.  Instead of using conventional medicine exclusively to treat the cancer, Aunty Joan made a decision to incorporate lāʻau as part of her healing regime.  

“Yah my doctor said I was supposed to lose 30 pounds or more, which I wish I did but I nevah,” she laughs.  “I wen scold my doctor, ʻeh you told me I was supposed to lose weight!”

Having access to ʻāina and building a relationship to that wahi pana has been crucial to Aunty Joan’s healing.  She learned from Pua, Hoʻoulu ʻĀina’s on-staff lāʻau practitioner, to listen to the land and respond to her rhythm.  She learned about process and setting your intentions right.  90% of the healing is through pule.  The other 10% is from the plant itself. 

Although she has returned to work, Aunty Joan is committed to making her health a number one priority.  Part of her treatment is to continue to connect with ʻāina – digging in the earth, planting lāʻau for others, weeding around the ʻahu.

She dreams that some day ʻāina will become the piko for community health centers.  That spaces will be created for patients to receive “ʻāina therapy” just as she has.

“It’s all about allowing the land to heal us,” Aunty Joan says.

That’s why Aunty Joan is our ʻĀina Warrior of the week.  Mana Wahine.  Strong.  Resilient.  Caring.  Committed.  Passionate.  Healer.