The kitties are so excited!
For months, they have been saving all their toonas towards a dream vacation!
It was a long flight, but they have finally landed in beautiful Hawaii for a wonderful week!
"Oh boy! There's a luau on the beach every day!"
"Oh Wow! Look at all this yummy food!"
"I was STARVING on that flight! Pretzels and tuna joose! Hmmpf!"
"Isn't the grilled mahimahi delicious?"
"Another pineapple rum, please!"
Each day, they spent lolling on the beach, eating, surfing... and eating some more!
"What a beautiful day! Anyone up for surfing?"
"Well, maybe after we go back for more food!"
"I'm glad they weren't kidding when they said, "All you can eat"...
"This is a purrfect vacation! Food, food, and...um...more food!"
"Com'on, time to enjoy the water, guys!!"
"Boy, it's so much fun 'hangin' sixteen'! Whoopeee!!!"
"Hey! Did you see Luna shoot the curl?"
"Whoooa!! Mama!"
"Each day she gets better at that surfing!"
"Well, it's getting dark! And it's the last day of vacation! Phooey!"
"Hey, it's almost time for the show at the luau to start!"
"Oooohhh!!! That fire-dancer is kinda scary!"
"Yeah...and listen to the beat of those drums! Spooky!"
The following is a Hunny Plumpkin story... about a story. She hopes you do enjoy.
The Legend of Tiki Wiki Woo!
The kitties' last night of their Hawaiian Vacation has arrived and they have all gathered on the little quiet beach away from the bigger beaches. They can just make out the dancers and hear the music from further up the coastline, nearer their hotel. But they have this little beach all to themselves, complete with a fire, some torches, and a feast of scrumtious food. As the sun sets, they settled down too, to hear Kudzu tell them a story he had promised he would, on their last night in Hawaii.
Kudzu:” I promised you a story and now is the time. Gather round and listen to the distant drums. A famous Hawaiian storyteller, called Ho ni Po lomp kine, told me this tale. “
Boo Boo: (whispers to Giles) “That sounds familiar...”
Giles: “Shhhhh!”
Kudzu: “She is the keeper of the stories of the 'Old Ones' who first came to these islands, as was her mother before her, and her mother before her and so on, all the way back to the time of the 'Old Ones'.. And this story is one of the oldest. And for that matter, so is Ho ni Po lomp kine!”
Boo Boo: “Tee hee, I knew I knew that name...”
Giles: “Shhhhh!”
Kudzu: “Long, long... loooooooong ago... but not that far away actually... just over there in fact. See? In the moonlight? That pretty little island a ways off... that's where it all began!
The story is named after the island and so it is called 'The Legend of... Tiki... Wiki... Woo!' The island was called that by the 'Old Ones' because of the volcano gods that lived there. There were three of them and their names were...”
Jr: “Tiki, Wiki and Who?”
Maggie: “Woooo!”
Bandit: Who?”
Maggie: “Woooo!”
Jr: “Wooohooo!”
Kudzu: “Noooooooooo! I mean... No! Woo!”
Boo Boo: “No way!”
Kudzu: “Stop!”
All the kitties: “Tee hee, snork, chortle” and other assorted muffled laughter.
Kudzu: “Ahem! As I was saying... it is 'The Legend of Tiki Wiki Woo' and the three volcano gods who lived on the island did not make life easy for the first arrivals... This is not a fairy tale little ones! It is a tale of hardship, leadership, friendship...”
Boo Boo: (whispering to Giles) “Well it would be about ships...”
Giles: “Shhhhh!”
Kudzu: “... and mystery!”
All the kitties: (a collective and loud) “Oooooooooooo!”
Maggie: (a quiet and quick) “Woo”
The kitties look over their shoulders across the sands and the waves to the mysterious island and as the tale unfolds, they imagine themselves in the roles of the 'Old Ones', finally falling silent, mesmerized by Kudzu's voice and the ancient legend...
Kudzu: “The first arrivals to the island landed first on the tiny island you see there. The volcano gods were not happy to have company, having lived alone for many millenia. The first god, Tiki, spoke so loudly and so deeply that the very earth beneath the feet of the Old Ones shook and rumbled. The Old One Who Heals had to heal many who fell, in awe of Tiki's voice. It was basically a lot of contusions and a few broken bones... not fun but anyway... the Old Ones paid no mind to Tiki. They fixed their bones and cleaned their cuts and scrapes and carried on as usual, except for one thing. They rather liked the way the moving earth had made their legs and arms wave about and so the Old Ones did the arm and leg movements for themselves. They called it dancing.
The gods were very angry that these Old Ones had ignored the voice of Tiki, and to boot were all now dancing, so Wiki spoke to them in an even louder voice! Wiki exhaled so loudly when he spoke, that the top of the mountain exploded into a million little pieces and fell on the grass houses the Old Ones had made and set them on fire! The Old Ones ran out of their houses and into the sea until there was nothing left of their houses and the broken bits of mountain stopped falling. That was quite a long time and they got tired so they floated on the waves and conserved their energy to just paddling back towards shore if they started to drift away. Finally the sky cleared and they all came back and remade their homes and carried on as usual except for one thing. They rather liked floating on the waves and paddling in the direction they chose so they took it up as a pastime for when they weren't eating, sleeping, dancing and otherwise having fun. They called it surfing.
Well the gods were furious that these Old Ones had ignored Tiki, and now Wiki.and to boot had taken up surfing, so Woo spoke. Woo not only spoke the loudest, he spoke the longest and the fiercest! Woo sent molton rock from deep inside the mountain, out through the hole Wiki had made, after Tiki had given the mountain a good shake, and spewed it high up into the air which then came rushing down the sides of the mountain taking everything in its path.
The Old Ones surfed for their lives to the bigger island, this island, to this very beach that we are sitting on now, and clutching each other close watched the volcano gods vent their wrath. Heads were counted and unfortunately one head was not on this beach. With great horror and anguish the Great Chief of the Old Ones, 'Aukai (The Seafarer) realized that the only member of the islanders missing was his beautiful daughter, the Princess 'Ehako (Dove)! As 'Aukai and the others watched, the volcano gods took control of almost all of the island. There were a few places where the lava did not go however and they all prayed that 'Ehako had found refuge from Tiki, Wiki and Woo!
One among them did not pray, and when asked by the others why he did not sit with them and wail for their lost princess and pray for her safety, the one called Ka'imi (The Seeker) told them he was too busy. They were angry with him and demanded to know why he was so unfeeling but the young and handsome Ka'imi was too busy building a canoe and filling it with coconuts to answer them.
Outraged, they forgot their own prayers and their own grieving and went to 'Aukai to tell him of the terrible Ka'imi. The Great Chief told them it could not be so, that in fact, Ka'imi was in-love with the princess and had asked him many times for her hand in marriage.
“I have always told them they are too young... she is my makamae Kamali'I wahine Mamo (precious Princess Rare Bird)” he sobbed. “He must be grieving in his own way!” And he went down the beach to speak with Ka'imi and ask him why he was behaving so oddly.
“I hope you are not too busy to speak with me!” cried 'Aukai when he came upon the strong, young Ka'imi pushing his canoe into the waves. Ka'imi stopped and looked at the Great Chief, who he loved like a makuakane (father). “Keali'I (The Chief) wants me to wail with the others?” began Ka'imi “When ku'u lei (my beloved) needs help? No, let them cry and let them pray to the lewa lani (highest point in Heaven) and I will do what my heart tells me to do... Is not the heart's wisdom Heaven's answer?”
'Aukai was stunned by Ka'imi's fervor and as the young suitor of his beloved 'Ehako put the last of his supplies in the canoe, which appeared to be rope, tools and many, many coconuts, he asked “What are you going to do?” Ka'imi jumped into the canoe as the waves lifted it and called back “Save her!”
'Aukai knew he loved Ka'imi then and there and was suddenly afraid he would lose him too and ran into the waves and cried out after him “But the gods have spoken! They will have 'Ehako or all of us!”
As he stood, the water swirling around his legs, he faintly heard the quickly dimishing voice of the brave Ka'imi call back to him “Not while I breathe Makuakane!”
The night was a terrible one. From this very beach, the chief and the others watched the pili koko (blood) red lava on the little island of Tiki Wiki Woo make its way to the sea. They listened to the waves upon this beach and to the hissing on the beach across the waves. Everyone felt bad for the anger they had felt towards young Ka'imi. Now they prayed for the princess and her would be rescuer. The night was the longest night the islanders had ever known... longer than any night in the canoes that had brought them to these islands. No one slept except the children, and even they would wake fitfully with bad dreams of loud voices, growing louder and louder all the time. Their parents would rock them back to sleep and as they rocked they whispered over and over again their prayers that Ka'imi would be lanakila (victorious).
'Aukai looked to the small island in the darkness and listened to all those around him quietly saying their prayers. A soft moani ke 'ala (fragrant breeze) brushed his face and he was startled. They had only been able to smell the burning foliage and now suddenly the scent of the Pikake (Jasmine flower) reached him! 'Ehako always wore a Pikake in her hair. He took a deep breath and as he took in the lovely scent and everyone around him prayed he heard again Ka'imi say “Is not the heart's wisdom Heaven's answer?” It was then, that he knew in his own heart, they were both safe.
