Sunday, September 28, 2014

Young Poet Breathes Life into Old Hawai'i

Alika N.

Alex "Alika" Noholoa Windell is a poet and lyricist experimenting with language fusions. He speaks four languages and has a special fondness for the Hawaiian language.
He loves the poetic rhythms of the Hawaiian mele. In his ode to the Isle of Maui he blends Hawaiian with English to great effect.





MAUI

Loke lani, lovely blossom (Loke lani = official flower of the island of Mauʻi)
When your island holds my hands
To show me all her faces
Onaona, nahenahe (onaona = alluring, nahenahe = soft)
One is gentle, one is sweet
When the Maui mornings so serene
Mumble love through flowers so pristine
They touch all my senses!
So here my hands are always open
E hele mai, and never leave! (e hele mai = come)
Hana, Maui


You can find more of his poems at deviantART
In addition to audio poems he has a host of musical renditions combining Hawaiian/English lyrics with innovative sounds. You can listen to his creations at this link on Jango. My favorite is Moonbow.

Alika is presently working on a stage play he describes as a fairy tale inspired by Hawaiian mythology.

It is lovely to see how the legends of old Hawaii have influenced this thoroughly modern world citizen in his creative life.


Linda Ballou Author of Wai-nani, A Voice from Old Hawai'i

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