2019 Miss Aloha 'Auana: Lindsey Kahiehielaunaʻole Miwa Ching

Ka Lā ʻŌnohi Mai O Haʻehaʻe. Composed by Kumu Keawe Lopes, “Hanohano Hapuuhale” honors Mrs. Florence Kuupualeipoinaole Niau Nicholas, known to all of us as ʻAnakē Lolena. This mele inoa was gifted to her at the Rotary Club of West Honolulu’s David Malo Awards Ceremony. Aunty Lolena is a living treasure and an unwavering advocate for the revitalization of the Hawaiian language.

Ke Kai O Kahiki. “Mī Nei” was composed by Charles E. King, and he intended for the song to be sung by the hula dancer as a complete performance. Entwining both mele and hula, Makaʻaka seeks to attract the attention of the object of her affection. Through song and dance, she describes the lovely features that she possesses. “Ahahana lilo ʻoe, lilo iā mī nei”... “Aha! You are taken, taken by me.”

Hālau o Ka Hanu Lehua. “Ka Wai Lehua ʻAʻala Ka Honua” was penned by Frank Kawaikapuokalani Hewett in 1979 and speaks of the waters of life–specifically the rain that falls from the heavens. Both rain and lehua blossoms drift from the tree to the earth and then into the waters of the sea. The cycle of life is metaphorically cast and interwoven in the mele. “This song is for you, my royal child and your name is Ka Wai Lehua ʻAʻala Ka Honua.”

Kawailiʻulā. Chief Kauakahialiʻi becomes masterful at playing the flutes Kanikawī and Kanikawā at his home Pihanakalani. The sounds of the magical flutes fill the evening air and drift toward the lowland. The beautiful chiefess Kaʻililauokekoa is lured to the upland home of Kauakahialiʻi. He steals her heart and they become companions for life.

Kawaiʻulaokalā. Aunty Helen Lindsey Parker’s song, “ʻOlu O Puʻulani” (the peace on heaven’s hill), is for her sister’s guest house which overlooked Kalaupapa Settlement on Molokaʻi. This was a guest home for those visiting ʻohana at Kalaupapa. This mele was not just an acknowledgement of affection for the guest home but also for a kamalei...a beloved child or punahele...a favorite of the family who was sent to the settlement and who will never be forgotten.

Hālau Hula ʻO Nāpunaheleonāpua. Hawaiʻi’s songbird, Lena Machado, composed beautiful mele in her lifetime, many of which were inspired by personal experiences. The mele inoa, “Pua Māmane,” was written in honor of her eldest brother William “Bill” Kauila Waiʻaleʻale, who Lena first met in her youth. “Ka liko pua māmane” refers to the budding māmane blossom which symbolizes Lena’s admiration for her brother and his desire to reunite the ʻohana.