As the last mural project for the Spring 2016 semester, the Hālau Pāheona afterschool programʻs assignment was to create a mural based based of the oli that they chant everyday before they enter our hālau (classroom of learning). The simple oli of “Hiki mai ka lā” was given to Estria from Aunty Leina‘ala Heine to be his kahea oli (calling chant) for his teaching of youth.

Oli Kahea – Hiki Mai Ka Lā
Hiki mai ka lā i ka honua
Nā mo‘olelo, e mau aku ka mo‘omeheu (e)
Ka leo o nā pua i kaiao
Kū lo‘ihi i ka pā ahe o ka makani (e)

Sun shines over the earth
Stories nurturing the culture
The voice of the children in enlightenment
Waiting here for the cool breeze

One of the main goals was for the haumāna (students) to learn the process on how to narrow down many concepts and ideas down to one concept. The haumāna built their confidence after presenting in front of their peers and learning how to speak about their art. They also realized how to eliminate bad ideas and concepts that do not pertain to the overall goal of the mural. With so many ideas, the students also learned how to put aside ego, but also stick up for ideas they strongly believed in. When new haumāna now enter Hālau Pāheona, they can not only read the oli, but understand visually what our oli means.