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Blessings

As I sit back this Thanksgiving night contemplating all the many blessings I have to be thankful for, I’m a little amazed at what this year has brought my way.

I began the year anxiously awaiting the debut of Hiro and Simone Tematahotoa’s second child, a little boy they named after my son, Hoku! The best part is that they also asked me to be this baby’s Godmother. He was born just

two weeks after my son’s 23rd birthday. A few weeks later I went to Tahiti to meet the World’s Most Beautiful and Perfect Godchild.

In May, we celebrated our 12th Annual Repertory Concert with exciting performances by our hard working students. In addition to the usual Hula, Ori, and African offerings, we also enjoyed very beautiful dances by members of the Chhandam School of Kathak.

Not long after, my family rushed back East to Washington D.C. to be with my Dad, who was very ill. My Dad was a very strong man, having been born in the South at the height of the Jim Crow era. He worked as a cook on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, a job which gave him and other Black men of that time the opportunity to leave the farm and see the rest of the country. This was a very prestigious job at the time, and he was very proud of it. He was assigned to assist during the visit of the young Queen Elizabeth II during her visit to the U.S. in 1957. And it was on one of the runs from North Carolina to New York that he met my Mom.

My Dad always did things his own way. The moment we walked into his room at the hospice he

explained everything he wanted us to do with his possessions. He was so strong and alert that the folks at the hospice were certain that he would be well enough to be transferred to long term care. The fact was, he wanted to be strong for us, to say a proper goodbye in his own way. Within a few days of our return to California, and just a few moments after one last precious phone conversation where he assured me that “everything’s going to be all right”, he left us. He was 92 years old.

It is funny, but before this time I never thought that I took much after my Dad. But now, I can see a lot of him in me.

By June, I was the narrator for the third weekend of the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival (I had a blast!) at the Palace of Fine Arts, and we were also in high Tahiti Fete’ mode. Hiro, Simone, Heiva, and the World’s Most Beautiful and Perfect Godchild arrived along with Heifara, Maguy, Teva, Papa Dan and Heimanu and began rehearsing with KaUaTuahine just two weeks before the Fete’

. Although we had been rehearsing and preparing the dances and costumes all year long, it was a whole different ball game now that we had them with us. The nightly rehearsals paid off as we walked away with several trophies from the competition. Click here to hear a sample of their beautiful music. The full rendition of our Ahuroa medley is on the Ahuroa 2005 CD, available on our catalog page.

The best part though, was strengthening our ties with our Tahitian family.

No sooner than we bid a fond “adieu” to Hiro did we head off to Maui for Ka’aha Hula o Halauaola. Mali’o has written a wonderful account of our experience there.

I have been taking class in Sabar drumming of Senegal for some time

now, given by Dr. Zakarya Diouf of the Diamano Coura West African Dance Company. He is from Senegal and earlier this year he invited the members of the drumming group to visit Senegal with him and to stay at his home in Dakar. The departure date was just two days after I returned from Maui. (Whew!) Please check back in a few weeks for an account of the amazing time I had there.

For quite some time I have been wanting to tell my story of how I am evolving as a dancer and musician in my own way. In October, that dream was realized by the performance of “A Walk By The Sea” at ODC Theater in San Francisco. The show received much critical acclaim. We will present it once more in 2006. Please check the web site periodically for updates on this.

KaUaTuahine was invited to perform at the Culture Moves! Dance in Oceania Conference in New Zealand just earlier this month. The conference was held at Te Papa, the national museum of New Zealand, Aotearoa. The group performed Na Hiti Na Manu ‘Erua. We’re just now getting back and over our jet lag. Check back soon for our story about this experience. In the meantime, Te Papa has a posted gallery of some

wonderful photographs of the performances .

Finally, as we enter the holiday season, I would like to share some of my son’s work with everybody. (Le Grande) Hoku is a film maker. He has just launced a brand new website to let everyone know about his latest film, Rose. A few years back he won an award at the Cannes Film Festival for a Public Service Announcement he wrote and directed called Prelude. Not only am I very proud of it, I think it is a timely message. Please click here to see it.

I am thankful for my many blessings, for my family, friends and students.

Have a wonderful and safe holiday season.

Kumu Mahealani

Photography
Le Petit Hoku, Godmother and Le Petit Hoku, my Dad holding my son Hoku, KaUaTuahine Fete practice, Tahitians enjoying a San Francisco summer, KaUaTuahine dancer Maluhia at Ka'aha Hula, a gentleman of Dakar, "A Walk by the Sea" performance of Te Aroha Nui, Jacque Barnes as Yemonja at "A Walk", KaUaTuahine performs at Te Papa Tongarewa, the National Museum of New Zealand for the Culture Moves! Conference on Dance in Oceania, Hoku Uchiyama, Maui palms.

Our thanks to the photographers
Simone Tematahotoa, Gabriel Soria, Raj and Halau Hula o Keikiali'i, Tom Schnetlage, Anna Rahn, the conveners of Culture Moves
and Te Papa Tongarewa National Museum of New Zealand.


		Mahea's Calabash November 26, 2005
	Blessings As I sit back this Thanksgiving night contemplating all the many blessings I have to be thankful for, I’m a little amazed at what this year has brought my way. I began the year anxiously awaiting the debut of Hiro and Simone Tematahotoa’s second child, a little boy they named after my son, Hoku! The best part is that they also asked me to be this baby’s Godmother. He was born just two weeks after my son’s 23rd birthday. A few weeks later I went to Tahiti to meet the World’s Most Beautiful and Perfect Godchild. In May, we celebrated our 12th Annual Repertory Concert with exciting performances by our hard working students. In addition to the usual Hula, Ori, and African offerings, we also enjoyed very beautiful dances by members of the Chhandam School of Kathak. Not long after, my family rushed back East to Washington D.C. to be with my Dad, who was very ill. My Dad was a very strong man, having been born in the South at the height of the Jim Crow era. He worked as a cook on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, a job which gave him and other Black men of that time the opportunity to leave the farm and see the rest of the country. This was a very prestigious job at the time, and he was very proud of it. He was assigned to assist during the visit of the young Queen Elizabeth II during her visit to the U.S. in 1957. And it was on one of the runs from North Carolina to New York that he met my Mom. My Dad always did things his own way. The moment we walked into his room at the hospice he explained everything he wanted us to do with his possessions. He was so strong and alert that the folks at the hospice were certain that he would be well enough to be transferred to long term care. The fact was, he wanted to be strong for us, to say a proper goodbye in his own way. Within a few days of our return to California, and just a few moments after one last precious phone conversation where he assured me that “everything’s going to be all right”, he left us. He was 92 years old. It is funny, but before this time I never thought that I took much after my Dad. But now, I can see a lot of him in me. By June, I was the narrator for the third weekend of the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival (I had a blast!) at the Palace of Fine Arts, and we were also in high Tahiti Fete’ mode. Hiro, Simone, Heiva, and the World’s Most Beautiful and Perfect Godchild arrived along with Heifara, Maguy, Teva, Papa Dan and Heimanu and began rehearsing with KaUaTuahine just two weeks before the Fete’. Although we had been rehearsing and preparing the dances and costumes all year long, it was a whole different ball game now that we had them with us. The nightly rehearsals paid off as we walked away with several trophies from the competition. Click here to hear a sample of their beautiful music. The full rendition of our Ahuroa medley is on the Ahuroa 2005 CD, available on our catalog page. The best part though, was strengthening our ties with our Tahitian family. No sooner than we bid a fond “adieu” to Hiro did we head off to Maui for Ka’aha Hula o Halauaola. Mali’o has written a wonderful account of our experience there. I have been taking class in Sabar drumming of Senegal for some time now, given by Dr. Zakarya Diouf of the Diamano Coura West African Dance Company. He is from Senegal and earlier this year he invited the members of the drumming group to visit Senegal with him and to stay at his home in Dakar. The departure date was just two days after I returned from Maui. (Whew!) Please check back in a few weeks for an account of the amazing time I had there. For quite some time I have been wanting to tell my story of how I am evolving as a dancer and musician in my own way. In October, that dream was realized by the performance of “A Walk By The Sea” at ODC Theater in San Francisco. The show received much critical acclaim. We will present it once more in 2006. Please check the web site periodically for updates on this. KaUaTuahine was invited to perform at the Culture Moves! Dance in Oceania Conference in New Zealand just earlier this month. The conference was held at Te Papa, the national museum of New Zealand, Aotearoa. The group performed Na Hiti Na Manu ‘Erua. We’re just now getting back and over our jet lag. Check back soon for our story about this experience. In the meantime, Te Papa has a posted gallery of some wonderful photographs of the performances . Finally, as we enter the holiday season, I would like to share some of my son’s work with everybody. (Le Grande) Hoku is a film maker. He has just launced a brand new website to let everyone know about his latest film, Rose. A few years back he won an award at the Cannes Film Festival for a Public Service Announcement he wrote and directed called Prelude. Not only am I very proud of it, I think it is a timely message. Please click here to see it. I am thankful for my many blessings, for my family, friends and students. Have a wonderful and safe holiday season. Kumu Mahealani Photography Le Petit Hoku, Godmother and Le Petit Hoku, my Dad holding my son Hoku, KaUaTuahine Fete practice, Tahitians enjoying a San Francisco summer, KaUaTuahine dancer Maluhia at Ka'aha Hula, a gentleman of Dakar, "A Walk by the Sea" performance of Te Aroha Nui, Jacque Barnes as Yemonja at "A Walk", KaUaTuahine performs at Te Papa Tongarewa, the National Museum of New Zealand for the Culture Moves! Conference on Dance in Oceania, Hoku Uchiyama, Maui palms. Our thanks to the photographers Simone Tematahotoa, Gabriel Soria, Raj and Halau Hula o Keikiali'i, Tom Schnetlage, Anna Rahn, the conveners of Culture Moves and Te Papa Tongarewa National Museum of New Zealand.