1. vs. Cleared, as rain; alleviated, assuaged, as grief; to clear up, as rain; to pass, as sadness. Ua mao aʻela ke kaumaha, the sadness has ceased. (PPN mao.)

2. vi. To fade, as cloth.

3. n. Type of fish. (KL. line 158.) Cf. maomao.

Hawai’i has been inundated with ua. Rain. And lots of it. Listening to the ua sounding on every bit of roof, gutter, cement, road, grass, leaves, lehua. It cleans my soul.

Today’s He Momi, mao, refers to the clearing of rain. It is over, it is passed. While I do love the ua, I am tired of trudging in my yard and feeling like it is swamp like. I am tired of the grass, too long for me, because the ground is so soft that even when the ua has cleared, the riding mower will not be able to traverse certain areas of our property. By posting mao as today’s Hawaiian word, I am using the power of intention.

Ua mao. The rain has cleared.  As rain is symbolic of sorrow in Hawaiian, the term mao is also symbolic of that emergence from grief. I hope that for those of you who may be experiencing sadness and grief these days that it, like the rain, although heavy on your shoulders, wills soon lift and clear skies and the brightness of day will lift restore joy to your soul.

Ua mao aʻela ke kaumaha – The sadness has ceased.

Uē ka lani, ola ka honua – When the heavens weep, the earth lives.

Copyright: 2015 – Liana Iaea Honda. All rights reserved. All versions of He Momi e Lei ai”, in its entirety, past and present, is the property of L. K. I. Honda. Reproduction and use of any kind other than the sharing of this website is prohibited. Alteration to the original content in any form is prohibited in every and any instance, and use in any other variant is prohibited without written consent of the author. Adress inquiries to: hemomi [at] gmail.com. Definitions and wise sayings are from: Hawaiian Dictionary by Pukui and Elbert, 1986. ʻŌlelo Noʻeau – Hawaiian Proverbs & Poetical Sayings by Mary Kawena Pukui, 1983.