Kui Tree - by Momi Jones |
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| `O ka leo aloha i kono mai ia`u ea lâ Kuahiwi nani i ka`u `ike `ana mai eô Me kou leo la nahenahe mai E ho`olauna malihini `O ka leo u`i o nâ manu i lohe `ia lâ Maliu pawa o ke kakahiaka eô Me ka lehua lâ e moani nei He u`i mai ho`i kau `O ka wai inu o ka `Amelika ea lâ Hu`ihu`i `oe he inu anei eô Kahi wai la aniani lâ He `ono ke momoni aku Ha`ina mai ana ka puana ea la Kuahiwi nani kau i ka hano eo Me kou leo la nahenahe mai Ha`aheo Kui Tree |
The voice of love invites me to See the beautiful mountains. Calling Is your sweet voice So friendly to the newcomer Hear the beautiful voices of the birds The intoxicating drink of the Americans Tell the refrain |
| Source: - After World War I, armed forces arrived to strengthen regiments stationed at Schofield Barracks. February, 1921, they were combined to form the Hawaiian division and greatly increased the population of Wahiawa. Water for Schofield was supplied by a spring on the slopes of the Waianae Range but was not sufficient to support the ever increasing population. A reservoir was built in 1918, on the upper slopes, but this supply was still inadequate, especially during the dry seasons. Plans were made to build a dam, a spillway, and tunnel systems from the Ko`olau Range to a new reservoir. The federal government sent crews from Washington to visit the site and assist the local civil engineers with the plans. One of the engineers was interested the plants and asked the name of a native tree. The local engineer drew a blank and in a thoughtless moment said, " Oh, that's a Ku tree". It was probably a Kuku`i Tree and the name became a joke in locals circles. Eventually the name caught on and the structure became known as the Kui Dam. The composer’s father-in-law helped maintain the dam in the Ko`olau mountains on Oah`u. When the composer and her husband were courting, they would sometimes rendezvous at Kui Tree Dam in the early morning. The chilly air may have caused them to imbibe on more than a few occasions. The song came to the composer in a dream and was written in 5 minutes. Translated by Kanani Mana | |