My Carved Lava Haumea, Hawaiian Fertility Goddess

Dior "Idol" Stilletos

It has brought to my attention that perhaps I was disparaging local culture in my depiction of the Dior “Idol” shoe with carved lava Fertility Goddess.

Oh No, nothing could be further than the truth. I do have  a treasured carved lava Fertility Goddess of my very own, and could have had a lot more, but further on that later.

My Goddess was made at a time when starchy Poi was more a mealtime choice than the currently popular fruit salad plate.  My Haumea is a bit more corpulent. 

Hawaiian lava is quite hard and brittle making it difficult to cut and carve without breaking. I learned this watching a young group of native Hawaiians carving the stone, called “fountain rock” at the Polynesian Cultural center on Oahu.  I found these dedicated young men worked long hours for low pay keeping the tourists supplied with this unique island token.  They would finish their long days with hands so tired and sore they were barely able to hold a soft banana. 

"Mano Kana", center

Being a creature of empathy I offered to message their aching hands as a cross cultural inroad, and often met with willing affirmation. I would accompany these carvers home to their modest dwellings.  It turned out that holding a banana wasn’t the only need of these virile young men.  The production quotas and demanding “Luna’s”  (Hawaiian for boss)  caused a great deal of built up tension and anxiety in which  lending my helping hands could also be of use .  Needless to say my healing and focused message made for a lot of gratitude, thankfulness for healing release.  Their loud and joyous cries were noticed, word got around, and, in my island visits I became very popular for requests of my ministrations. 

Now perhaps The Fertility Goddess didn’t have any direct affect on me, but I can confidently say it did on many of her idol creators.  Who knows, my “hand intensive” help could have even had a minor affect on island overpopulation. Of course in a very small way.  But it was not for any lack of zeal that I undertook my mission in earnest, so much so that on many occasions , my helpful visits were so well received that I not only got great joyous cries of thanks but many, many offers of a treasured gift of their craft. Not being one to take food out of a young mouth I turned all these Fertility Goddess” statue offers graciously down.

Haumea

That is all except for one.  Mano Kana (namesake of “The passionate long roped God”) was such a gift to Hawaiian manhood that I gave much more of myself than usual. He was more than grateful on many occasions in my island visits over the years.  Many times his hands were so sore and useless I had to spend extended time with him.  Often, this time with him ended with his being so relaxed he would fall asleep as I watched his beatific smile.  He was exceedingly grateful and offered me a sample of his carving. That one time I accepted, more as a remembrance of times shared .

Some say it was a wonderful thing I did eliciting Hawaiian love and cultural understanding.  Perhaps, after all, there is something to the Lava Fertility Goddess.

LONO

Haumea, honey, you may have facilitated a lot of love and attention from me .  Oh course, in my case, perhaps I should more thankful to “Lono,”  Haumea’s male equivalent .