Last year we attended the Lei contest and lei making workshop on May 1, Lei Day here in Hawaii. This year the festival was May 2nd. We headed over the the Sheraton on the Coconut Coast but there wasn’t much happening, so I’m sharing this story from last year.
The holiday was first celebrated in 1928. It is a day of celebration rather than a holiday, recognizing and celebrating the Hawaiian custom of giving and receiving lei.
We celebrated Lei Day by making some lei and visiting the Lei Contest and Silent Auction at the Puna Ballroom of the Royal Sonesta Kaua’i Resort. What fun!
There were perhaps 3 dozen of us who, for a donation of $5, were taught how to make a lei.
The people everywhere here on Kauai are so friendly and welcoming, in the Aloha Spirit.
The idea for Lei Day came from poet Don Blanding, often referred to as the poet laureate of Hawaii.
Aloha Oe
It's more than just an easy word for casual good-bye;
It's gayer than a greeting and it's sadder than a sigh;
It has the hurting poignancy, the pathos of a sob;
It's sweeter than a youthful heart’s exquisite joyous throb;
It's all the tender messages that words can not convey;
It's tears unshed, and longing for a loved one gone away;
It's welcome to Hawaii and it's lingering farewell;
It's all the dear and silent things that lover's lips can tell;
It's woven into flower leis and old Hawaiian songs;
It's frailer than a spider-web and strong as leather thongs;
It's fresh as dew on ginger blooms and older than the moon;
It's in the little lullabys that native mothers croon;
It's said a hundred different ways, in sadness and in joy;
Aloha means "I love you," so I say "Aloha Oe."Don Blanding, 1894-1957. Allpoetry.com.
It was a Friday night, so we headed to Hanapepe for the Friday Night Art Fair.
This lady is always making and selling leis at the swinging bridge. What fun!
I’ll post some videos of the excellent ukulele and hula music and dancing. We ate sushi at Japanese Grandma’s, then mingled with the crowd.
The amazing bookstore here is moving. Today was its last day in Hanapepe, and I scored some exciting books.
A Chevy SS Nova in mint condition was parked outside. Wow. We had a 1977 Nova that was, frankly, not a very good car. But this one looked great!
Tonight the sky was clear as we watched the winter constellation Orion set in the west.
One of Orion’s two hunting dogs, Canis Major, faithfully followed him:
Sirius, the brightest star in the sky and just slightly obscured by whisp of cloud above, marks the eye of Canis Major. You can’t miss it in the evening as the sky darkens. We picked out the southern cross near the horizon, a palm tree in the middle.
Hope you have clear skies and flowers wherever you may be! Aloha Oe!
Aloha. That's a beautiful poem. When I see for the first time Orion in the sky beyond my window in late September or early October I know that's put the Seal on The Coming of Winter.
That has to be not only the farthest western bookstore but the coolest bookstore! Love the name! And all those lei makers. Love seeing them David.