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Note: !MARRIAGE:To Nelson George SMITH, April 1, 1905 !DIVORCE: From Nelson George SMITH, 4 May, 1920
!MARRIED: To George Rhoads July 9, 1920 at Kalaupapa, Molokai,
Hawaii BY Rev. D.P. Mahihila
DEATH: Territory of Hawaii, Wailulu, Maui. Local Certificate # 9,
File # 487. Filed with Registrar General Feb. 5, 1941
1930-1937 Wailulu, Hawaii
May Day is Lei Day in Hawaii. After Easter, we would fill thebasket
with flowers from the garden & take it to a sick or elderly neighbor.
My earliest memories are in Wailuku, Maui & I was living with my
Grandmother, May Josephine LeClair Smith Rhoades, whom I called
KoKo. I loved her dearly! I remember going to the poi factory forKoKo.
Poi was a staple in our house & we had it every day. I was always
hopeing the sugar cane train would come by on the way, as usually acane
or two would fall off. Delicious! We did the shopping & went to the
bank & post office in the little town of Wailuku. Since she wasnearly
blind, she relied on me for errands & duties that required myeyesight.
When I was nearing the end of 1st grade, KoKo suddenly was in great
pain & I was sent to get Hilola, our neighbor up the hill. She sentme
down the street (a sandy lane) to the neighbor with a phone to callthe
doctor. When I returned, I had been locked out of the house & I was
very upset. I ran to the back door & they locked it too. I startedkicking
the door saying "I want my KoKo!" Hilola came out & made me stop,but I
was one sad little girl. KoKo was taken to the hospital where shedied.
However I was not told she had died, they thought I was too young, &was
only told she had gone to Honolulu to get well. A year or two beforethat,
we had gone to Honolulu to see the doctor, so it made sense. Onememory
of Honolulu was Faye (my cousin) & I had gone to see a movie. On the
way home I heard a strange sound, a siren. When I asked Faye aboutit,
she said someone was sick or dying & had to go to the hospital. I wasso
scared that it was KoKo that I ran every step of the way back toUncle
Vernon's where KoKo & I were staying! What a relief to find her OK.
I want to tell you about POI--poi is a Hawaiian staple. Like potatoes
for Irish & Americans, rice-Asians, pasta-Italians. I don't remember
eating potatoes while in Hawaii-they were perisible & hard to ship in
those days.
The taro root is related to the yam & the Hawaiians cooked them &
pounded them into a paste before eating. Please, don't ever letanyone
cram a spoonful into your mouth to show you what it taste like! Ihave
seen that done many times! Ugh! You would not do that to mashed
potatoes, or sour cream or say oatmeal, to someone that had never
tasted them. Use it like a dip! Hawaiians eat it with salty fish orlau
laus (pork), & the bland poi compliments the food. Much as saltychips
are good with a dip. We eat pasta with sauce, & potatoes with gravyto
make them taste better. I can eat poi alone, as I consider itdelicious,
(also nutritious) but to this day I can not eat mashed potatoesunless it
is smothered with gravy! KoKo could speak Hawaiian, (as well asEnglish
& Japanese), so I grew up knowing many Hawaiian words & phrases. Some
words were:
Pau (pronounced- pow) means stop!
Pau Kahana-(ka ha na) stop work now
Pupuli (poo poo lee) crazy
opu or opuu (o pu oo) stomach
okole ( o ko lee) your behind (bottom)
kapu-forbidden
wiki wiki-(wick kee wick kee) hurry up!
kuki-(coo ki) poo poo
hauli- (how lee) a white person
kanaka-(ka na ka) a native Hawaiian
kamaina- (ka ma i na) born in the islands
malahine (ma la hee nee) foreigner, not born in the islands
waihini-(wa hee nee) girl, woman
kani (ka nee) boy, man, male
Pilikia (pill ee kee a) trouble
kau kau (cow cow) food, or to eat
muumuu (moo oo moo oo) but usualy pronounced moo moo-Hawaiian
dress
luau (lu ow) Hawaiian feast
menahuni or menahunies (men a who knees) little people-fairies
calabash-not a Hawaiian word, but in common use for a child raisedby
someone not the parent. May be a friend's child, or an unwed mother
that did not want her child.
hanai-(ha ni) a child raised by a relative, like a grandparent oraunt.
aloha-hello or goodbye
mahalo-
Mele Kalekamaka-Merry Christmas
Several weeks after she (Koko) had died I was playing by myself,digging
in the dirt in the gingers (tall flowers), when a man came to the back
door. He asked Hilola for Mrs. Rhoades, & that was how I found outshe
had died.
I was devastated, and cried mysef to sleep every night. Since Ihadn't
been told, I figured I would be in trouble if they found out I knew,so I
didn't tell anyone. (Seems Annell & I were always getting intotrouble
for something! I don't think I had ever had a spanking before I lived
there!) It was not a good way to find out.
My mother was in California with Dell & Clark & my Grandfather,Nelson
Smith, was in China at the time, so I was sent to live with Hilola,Ed &
her daughter Annell until he returned. I was there about a month,
finished 1st grade, & then was taken to Honolulu to stay with Granddad&
Eva. Donald was three years older than I, & boy did he like to teaselittle
girls! They were very good to me, & I was there all summer & happy
there. Apparently they wanted to adopt me, but Mother said no. Istarted
2nd grade, but around my 7th birthday I was sent to the mainland
(California) to live with Mother, Clark & Dell. I didn't remember my
mother, & had never seen Clark until then, so it was quite anadjustment!
But it was nice to have a little brother.
Memories of Frances (Trevor) Meier
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