About Me
My name is Isaac Ikaika Moore. I am 17 years old. I was not born on Oʻahu however, I was raised here for 16 out of the 17 years I have been alive. I always lived along the windward side of the island moving around between Kaneʻohe and Kailua. The Mountains here are called Koʻolau and Olomana. In my personal opinion the Koʻolau mountains is one of my favorite sites to see, always. The two winds here are called Malanai and Ulumano. The rain here comes very often and it's always green on this side. The rain is named ʻApuakea and Uaʻawa.
In Hawaiian “Mālama Honua” means to take care of the Earth. So to me, I believe that taking care of the Earth means we have a very big responsibility and from the things I’ve learned through Hawaiian cultural practices and classes, is that we should take care of the Earth because the Earth takes care of us, and without it we would not be able to survive in the way that we do. Also to me, the meaning of mālama honua is much deeper than just taking care of the land, its also having a respect and gratitude towards it. Major reasons that shape this mindset of caring for the land has to do with the countless amount of times that I have been at the mercy of nature. So many times I have found myself in the position where the Earth could easily take me out but I am able to make it though. For example, I love surfing, and I go surfing very often. Sometimes however, I push my limits and go surfing when I know conditions are rough and waves are huge and over head. Yet I still go out and sometimes I get hurt and held under the water, come close to drowning, or get pouded by a massive set of waves. In these moments I realize that I am so small compared to the forces of nature and I have absolute zero control of it. My reaction to that is to give my respect. Other reasons include the fact that everything we have has come from the Earth. When we are hungry the ground feeds us and we are able to farm. If we damage the ground then we are hurting ourselves because we will not have any more food. Houses come from trees and everything we use is made from resources here on Earth. That gives us a huge reason to take care, because without the resources from the land, we have nothing. I signed up for this class because of this knowledge I have about why we should respect and take care of the aina. So, my purpose and hopes of knowledge to take away from this class is how I can do my part in protecting and nurturing the land. From, that I want to learn the step and be able to take part in that, and do some work on taking care of the Earth. After, the class is over I want to be able to share what I learned in hopes that others will be able to care for the land also. Aloha ʻāina is another thing that is said and is also viewed similar to taking care of the earth. However, I feel that aloha ʻāina has a deeper meaning than mālama honua. I believe this because aloha ʻāina means to love the land, not just take care of it. It's the thought of deep respect and always looking out and making sure the environment is good because i does so much for us as inhibitors. In the Hawaiian culture we learn that the Earth is not just some rock in space, but it's more like and older sibling the way that we both depend on each other and the land will always be here if we treat it the right way. I also believe that alpha ʻāina is a deeper way of saying mālama honua because it's not just about taking care of the land but is having a relationship with it, and when you are connected to the land, taking care of it just comes naturally. Overall, I am very excited for this Mālama Honua class and look forward to learning about the land the the different ways I can contribute to itʻs survival. |
Me enjoying the sunshine
Me enjoying nature.
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