Ka Ipu o Lono shares weekly devotionals to provide spiritual enrichment to members of the Kamehameha Schools ‘ohana. For more inspiration, visit the KS “Our faith” website.
Heluhelu Baibala
ʻAʻole hoʻi e nānā ana kēlā mea kēia mea i kāna iho; akā, e nānā hoʻi kēlā mea kēia mea i kā haʻi. – Pilipi 2:4
Scripture Reading
Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. – Philippians 2:4
He manaʻo o ke kahu
KS Maui Kahu Kalani Wong KSK’74
When you drive around your neighborhood, what do you notice? Maybe the flowers that are blooming, or the new shade of green on the Kawaguchi’s house. Or are you like me and notice the overgrown yards? Not to knock folks down for not keeping up their yard but to think, “I wonder if they are having some kind of difficulty? Is Mrs. Ching okay? Normally her son comes to cut the grass.”
I imagine doing a guerilla attack on that yard, sneaking in unannounced and string-trimming the grass, pruning the trees and bushes and making a quick getaway after. If you are looking at the world through God’s lens, you are looking out for the other person, thinking of how you might help them out.
When Maui’s mōʻī Piʻilani died, his older son Lonoapiʻilani became mōʻī. In the first years of Lonoapiʻilani’s reign all was well, and the people were content. Lonoapiʻilani took care of his brother Kihaapiʻilani, and the latter cared for the people by giving them food. Lonoapiʻilani became angry, for he felt Kihaapiʻilani was doing it to seize the kingdom for himself. This sibling rivalry went on and soon Lonoapiʻilani got so upset, he planned to end Kihaapiʻilani’s life, so Kiha ran away to other islands. He made his way back to Maui, eventually settling in Upcountry. He discovered there was a famine in Kula and Makawao, and the people subsisted on laulele, pualele, pōpolo berry, and other weeds.
One night, Kihaapiʻilani went to clear a patch of ferns to plant ‘uala, and on that same night he made a large one that would naturally require the labor of eighty men to clear. Kihaapiʻilani went to Hamakuapoko and Haliʻimaile to ask for ‘uala slips. The natives gave him whole patches of them wherever he went. He brought that back to the area that he had cleared, and others joined in to help plant the slips. This provided food for the people so they could get through the famine. Kihaapiʻilani’s eyes were on others and sought to make sure their needs were met, even though his own life was threatened. (From Ruling Chiefs, pp. 22-24.)
COVID-19 helped us to see that we all need each other to make it through, even if we were facing that same challenge. As we emerge from this pandemic, let us continue to keep an eye out for one another. Even if it is something simple like sharing a hand of bananas or cutting a neighbor’s grass, reach out and mālama i kekahi i kekahi. Such was the way of Iesū, such should be our way as well.
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