HIKI NŌ 1215 [intro music plays] [sound of beach waves] HIKI NŌ, Hawai‘i’s new wave of storytellers.

Aloha, and welcome to this week's installment of HIKI NŌ, Hawai‘i’s new wave of storytellers.

I'm Sam Tiwanak, a senior at Henry J. Kaiser High School in East O‘ahu, speaking to you from my home.

In this episode of HIKI NŌ, we'll continue our series of Student Reflections on life and school during the pandemic as we enter the homestretch of the second school year impacted by COVID-19.

We’ll hear a graduating senior's poetic perspective on life as he stands on the threshold of adulthood, and we'll tap into the HIKI NŌ archives for a look at the struggles this same student was experiencing in his junior year.

We'll meet the dedicated caretaker of the Limahuli Garden & Preserve on Kaua‘i.

And we'll continue our 10th anniversary celebration by reminiscing with one of the very first HIKI NŌ reporter-editors.

But first, here is my Student Reflection on how a friend inspired me.

I recorded it at my home on April 20, 2021.

The school year has been difficult for seniors like myself to adjust to this new lifestyle.

I wanted to share the experiences that I was able to gain from this pandemic.

When COVID hit, at first it was very hard to adjust to, and for a long time it was, but I had a lot more time to myself.

So, I had more time to explore my interest of creating videos.

I felt like sharing these videos, so I decided to post some of them online.

In the process, a fellow Class of 2021 student, Will Sato, had noticed my work.

He had contacted me to tell me that he actually liked the work that I did, and he himself was interested in video and photography.

Through social media, we were able to share our work, and I was able to be inspired by some of his work that he posts on his social media.

Naturally, as COVID’s restrictions began to lift, me and Will started to collaborate on videos, as well as photos.

Collaborating with Will has made me better as a creator because I was opened up to a new perspective on someone else who shared similar interests to me, as well as Will was able to teach me some of the ways to work cameras and how to light shots better.

It was also great to know that I was not alone in the struggle to deal with the pandemic.

Here is a little bit of what Will has to say about our collaborations.

So I'm able to create more video.

Right now we're collaborating for a school project.

It's not, like, a class project, but it's more like the whole school thing, where we collaborate.

And, yeah, we continue doing work together, you know, making videos.

He's a director, I do cinematography work, and stuff like that.

So, we're mostly like independent filmmakers.

In conclusion, though, times were tough, I was able to find people that I could relate to, as well as make new friends that I'm able to have fun with creatively, and just as friends.

If there's a message I could give to any seniors right now, it'd be that through our struggles, we find experiences to help uplift us.

Hopefully this story was able to uplift seniors or anyone going through a difficult time during this pandemic.

This is Sam Tiwanak from Kaiser High School for HIKI NŌ.

[sound of ocean waves] I'm Hannah Okamoto, and I'm a junior at Maui High School.

You know, when the pandemic first hit, life felt so surreal, and little did we know, everything would be different from then on.

Since then, nearly all aspects of my life have changed drastically.

From going to school to working in a pandemic, my life did a full 180.

Instead of driving to school with my new license, I was confined to my home on a laptop.

At first online school seemed so daunting.

I didn't get to see my friends as much and I learned everything through a screen, and being a hands-on learner made this transition a million times harder.

Having online classes did make my schedule a lot more flexible, but that meant that I could work more.

At one point I was working as much as 40 hours a week, and I was really struggling to find the motivation to go to my classes.

Since I worked at an essential business and came in contact with tons of people each day, I also had the constant worry of keeping both me and my family safe.

And, in all honesty, it was just super overwhelming.

Slowly, but surely, I finally began to adjust.

At work, there were new protocols put in place to protect everyone.

However, there were handfuls of people who just refuse to follow them, such as not wearing their mask properly.

This made me so reluctant to go to work each day, but I had to take extra safety measures to make sure everyone was safe.

On the brighter side, I learned what worked best for me school-wise, and I actually realized that it wasn't as bad as I thought.

I also kept my circle of friends way smaller and only surrounded myself with people who genuinely loved and supported me, which gave me that little extra push through these tough times.

Next up, we have a poetic personal essay from H.P.

Baldwin High School senior Chazz Coppa, as he contemplates what life has in store for him.

Humans are difficult to understand.

We have a conscious that allows us to think freely, move freely, speak freely, and we can just about do everything we ever dreamed of.

The average lifespan is 73.6 years, and the oldest person in the world is Kane Tanaka.

She's 117 years old, born in 1903, when the population was around 1.6 billion.

And in one person's life, our population grew to 7.8 billion.

They say that life flashes before our eyes when we die, which makes death a movie.

And what if every time we blink, it's like a screenshot we show ourself when we die.

Our first 18 years of life is like a free trial, and then after, we spend most of our time working, which leaves an empty feeling, like, there has to be more, something to fill that void.

Leaves us wondering, what is the point to life anyways?

We kind of go through the same daily routine: wake up, go to work, eat, and sleep.

Talking about sleep, did you know if you're 26, you spent a lifetime of sleeping of a person who's 75?

I'm an 18-year-old adult who has trouble sleeping, trying to figure out my next steps in life.

I'm one to dwell and overthink.

Why do we overthink?

Just causes stress and unnecessary feelings to be present.

In a few months I'm leaving for the Mainland to pursue a better life, but I'm quite scared.

I'm scared that I won't find what I'm looking for, although what I'm looking for does not exist yet.

So, until then, I'll keep pushing the complexity of humans and the reasons we live.

For some perspective on this deep thinker, let's take a look at a story from the HIKI NŌ archives by students at H.P.

Baldwin High School about Chazz and the struggles he experienced in his junior year.

School, work, home, sleep, repeat.

Chazz Coppa, a junior at H.P.

Baldwin High School, is a full-time student with a part-time job at a local pizzeria, who also finds time to help at his family's bakery.

He began working to pay his grandmother for the car he uses to make deliveries, but sometimes has to use his earnings to help with family expenses.

We were struggling on top of rent and stuff.

My parents they had like, they had like, uh, they had a flat tire in the beginning.

So, then they needed to buy new tires, and I had 400 in cash on me that I was going to pay my grandma with, but then I gave it to them because they needed new tires.

And then the following, after, they were behind on rent, and cable needed to be paid.

So, I ended up giving them another 800 to support that.

Along with loss of free time, taking on additional jobs takes a toll on a students’ mental and physical health.

As a counselor here at Baldwin High School, I do see my students, um, taking on the responsibilities of having outside jobs outside of school so that they can help their families, um, to bring down costs of living here in Hawai‘i.

You know, so some of them, uh, take the weight on of having an extra job and also the burden of their families not having money, and it plays out in different roles where they may, you know, be suffering from depression or anxiety in school.

Like he, um, he has been a little, like, more sad in his face.

His eyes are just not good.

He just falls asleep right when I see him home, so I'm barely around him anymore.

But sometimes he takes me out with his car and we go places.

There's, there's been change because he's been stressed, and I mean, I've talked to him many times about it.

You know, we've had our talks, and, and I understand like he's stressed out and everything and he has all his struggles, and he deals with a lot of stuff.

Despite these struggles, Chazz remains optimistic, determined to finance his family and his future.

We all have different lives and we're all, we all have to have that, you know, certain amount of responsibilities that we have to do.

So, I mean mine's only really differs from just my perspective and the way I see it.

He's a challenge.

He goes through it and, uh, he still goes to work every day.

I mean, he has to go pretty soon.

I mean, he's just, he's a warrior.

This is Skyler Masuda from H.P.

Baldwin High School for HIKI NŌ.

[sound of ocean waves] This is Janal Baron, a sophomore at Governor Wallace Rider Farrington High School on O‘ahu.

I'm recording this at my school on April 28, 2021 COVID turned my life upside down, but I managed to find a lot of good, too.

Prior to the quarantine, I was stuck at home for several weeks with a bad illness.

I couldn't do anything, and I rarely got out of bed.

When I recovered, I was excited to get out of the house and back to school, but two weeks later, COVID forced us all into lockdown.

I was in marching band, but before the school year ended, our director told us we wouldn't have a season in the fall.

I was disappointed because marching band was my favorite activity.

But realistically, I knew things wouldn't be opening up anytime soon, and I had to be patient.

On top of all that, I'm really involved in my church.

As I recovered from my illness, I was put on temporary relief for the church media team.

Over the summer, I was able to volunteer again, and I helped shape sermons to people worshiping at home.

I felt happy and proud that I could help and inspire members who couldn't attend service in person.

As the next school year rolled in, I wanted to do something active since band was canceled.

So I auditioned for the school musical, and I got a role.

This cheered me up because I really enjoyed the experience, and I wasn't stuck at home all the time.

There's no question, this past year was hard, but I learned that taking a risk can lead to great things, and even if we don't know what will happen in the future, we can always have hope for the unexpected.

[sound of ocean waves] Continuing our celebration of the 10th Anniversary of HIKI NŌ, here's the 10th installment in a series of profiles on outstanding HIKI NŌ alumni.

Uh, when I first heard about HIKI NŌ, uh, 10 years ago, uh, I had to recollect that, but it was, uh, very much a, a program that kind of gave me a voice and I was very much shocked, like, wow, they're going to trust us with creating videos and airing it on TV for people to see.

And that was, that was a very large honor to me and a, and a huge privilege for us to even have that, uh, avenue, uh, of being able to voice our opinion.

My name is, uh, Papu Uti.

I'm a junior attending Kapolei High School.

On the day of March 19, 2009, my freshman year, uh, I got into, what you call, a freak accident.

During a game of pickup football, Papu suffered a devastating blow to his left leg.

The left foot that he planted in the mud was injured when he was tackled.

The extent of the injury caused that leg to become amputated.

I think the closest that we ever got to being able to do that was just sharing videos at school.

But on a larger scale, being able to like, you know, tell my parents, “Hey, my video is going to show on PBS, like hey, let's go, let's go watch it.” And them also being very proud of that moment in time that we can kind of celebrate this, it was, it was exhilarating to have been a part of the experience.

One trend we saw in the first season of HIKI NŌ was stories about different factions of community coming together to solve a problem.

Coincidentally, two such stories centered around football: One dealt with building a place to play, the other dealt with the lights needed to play at night.

We go first to the windward side of O‘ahu, for Field of Dreams by the students of Kalāheo.

It was a, a place that we could actually be taken seriously, and as much as we can, uh, learn from the process.

And that's what I, I really appreciated with this opportunity and, and being able to have the interaction with our mentor and, uh, alongside with my, uh, teacher, uh, my digital media teacher.

And this whole synergetic relationship, just making sure that there's all of these avenues or, or, uh, people to go through in order to make sure that this, this story gets across and we can actually do something with it.

My real name, first of all, first of all, is Theodore Kamuela Casison, and my stage name from what I started with was actually, when I was in middle school.

I was 15, and I started with, uh, James Cole's United DJs and Musical Youth of Hawai‘i, which is a nonprofit organization.

And he gave me the stage name Lil Homie TC, but now I just go by TC because I dropped the Lil Homie.

Uh, so in New Hope Leeward, I am the Broadcast Media, uh, Lead for the entire campus and, uh, the entire church as a whole.

I believe my exposure through HIKI NŌ and that whole, uh, experience in and of itself, was very much a, a precursor or a foreshadowing of where I am today.

To see myself get called into this, and, and see my, my very drive and passion in video be used for this calling, it, it really, I had this sense of fulfillment and satisfaction that, uh, it all was working towards a purpose.

[sound of beach waves] This is Osai Ball, a fifth grader at Waiākea Elementary School on the island of Hawai‘i.

I am recording this at my school on April 25, 2021.

I was not physically in school for about 11 months.

For the most part, distance learning was going well.

Except for sometimes getting distracted by my cat at home, I adjusted pretty well to learning at home.

In February, I was able to go back to school.

When I first found out, I was feeling excited because I feel like I learn better face to face.

Hopefully I get better grades, but I felt afraid because I don't want to get the virus and spread it or even get sick.

Now, everyone has to wear a mask for the four hours they're in school, stand at least six feet apart, and sanitize our hands every time we entered the classroom.

You would have to sanitize your hands after going to the bathroom and washing your hands there.

Overall it is easier because I don't get distracted as much, and my teachers can show me how to do things easily.

School is a lot different than it used to be.

Social distancing in the classroom helps to get rid of some distractions.

I think that it is worth it to be back in school.

The school did a good job preparing for this, and things are starting to get back to normal.

We will take you now to Kaua‘i where students at Island School introduce us to the protector of a sacred place.

Limahuli Valley in Hā‘ena State Park on the North Shore of Kaua‘i is a sanctuary of native ecosystems, untouched by urban development.

Ms. Lei Wann is one of the valleys landowners and primary caretakers.

She preserves the wildlife and history of this sacred place as her ancestors before her.

We are the last kuleana, uh, land holders and the last descendants.

My great grand tutu, uh, was just born right down below here.

My ancestors were ‘oahi throwers and bearers and farmers and, uh, fishermen in this valley.

The archaeological sites that we'll see below, um, I'm told they built many of those structures.

As director of Limahuli Garden & Preserve, Ms. Wann draws on her family connection to the valley, her desire to perpetuate Hawaiian language and culture, and her conservation background.

She and her team work to preserve the valley, removing invasive species, collecting seeds from native plants, and clearing debris from the stream.

We have about 22 employees right now, and they're spread out between the whole valley.

We have a whole crew that work in the living collections and a garden area.

We have a crew that works in the visitor center, and we also have lower preserve crew that works in the back of the valley.

Here at the Gardens, we hold some of the last and only species of certain plants that, um, are completely extinct in the wild now or are, there's less than 200 left in the world.

In 2018, heavy rains triggered massive flooding on Kaua‘i’s North Shore, cutting off Limahuli from the rest of the island.

While this was a hardship for the community, Ms. Wann found a bright spot in her conservation work.

Prior to the flood, we'd have between 3,000 and 4,000 people a day in that small little park at the end of the road.

These roads are one-lane roads and there's one-lane bridges.

They can't take that many people per day, and not only that, you know, they're oftentimes, they're driving in places they don't belong, and it really was a mess.

And so, when 2018 floods happened and Hā'ena really shut down and was cut off for about a year and a half from the rest of the world, it gave us the time to build a proper parking lot and set goals and set boundaries on tourism.

New rules now limit park access to 900 visitors a day, and roughly 100 in the valley itself.

That was more manageable without taxing or impacting the resources.

We live in this really remote area and there's really, you know, rugged hillsides, and often landslides when there's rain.

We'll be using drone, drone technology to bring seeds back into the landslide areas.

Ms. Wann upholds her family calling to preserve Limahuli so future generations can experience the history and culture of our island home.

I'm inspired by my ancestors, by what was left for us here in Hawai‘i.

If we don't keep the traditions alive, we don't keep the plants alive that grew in this valley or that we use for certain practices, we lose that connection and that chance to connect with what our, our tutus or our ancestors were doing.

This is Bradley Pratt from Island School for HIKI NŌ.

[sound of ocean waves] Hi, my name is Jalen Acob, a junior at Moanalua High School on O‘ahu, and I recorded the following reflection on April 16, 2021.

The past year was challenging.

Just school in general was a struggle itself for me.

As my junior year was mostly at home, I still had to do my part on researching colleges, studying for SAT and ACT, keeping up with my grades, and prepping for senior year all floating in my mind without realizing and taking the time to step back.

I tried out some no-screen activities, and after a while doing them consistently, I began to truly appreciate them.

Journaling daily, getting outside for some fresh air, and sewing helped with my mental health.

I enjoyed doing them and use it as an outlet away from stress.

I never thought I would see myself journaling or sewing, but when going back to reality, it changed me to have a better mindset.

I have many things to improve on, but by getting up with my ability to stay strong and being honest with myself, facing my fears and being uncomfortable is what it takes to be grounded.

[sound of ocean waves] Thank you for taking the time to enjoy this edition of HIKI NŌ.

We hope that the work of Hawai‘i's new wave of storytellers has enlightened you of what we students have been experiencing during these challenging times.

Be sure to tune in next week for more proof that Hawai‘i’s young people HIKI NŌ, can do.

[outro music] [sound of beach waves and piano] Hi, this is David Braman, a seventh grader from Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School on Kaua‘i.

Aloha.

I'm Terrysa Uyeno, an eighth grader from Wai‘anae Intermediate School speaking to you from my home.

I am Zoe Slaughter, an 11th grade junior at Moanalua High School.

Hi, this is Capriana Nozaki, a sixth grader at Maui Waena Intermediate School.

Hi, I'm Lichen Forster, a senior at Waiākea High School.

I'm Kai Tsugawa, a fifth grader.

Hi.

I'm Emmy Okinaka, a senior at Waiākea High School.

This is Joey Fujinaka.

I'm Taylor McCann.

Aloha.

I'm Emma Tilitile, a senior from Wai‘anae High School.

I'm filming this from my home in Kahului.

This past year, like no other, has been extremely hard on many.

The first semester of our school year has been all online.

I have tried to look at this with a positive attitude.

My parents and I were nervous about sending me to in-person learning.

So we decided I will do 100 percent online school.

When the pandemic began to send students home, I was excited, like many of my peers, to have a break.

I was excited to watch movies, listen to music, and sleep in on weekdays.

I am feeling torn.

I am tired of staying at home all the time.

I'm missing my friends in person.

I've been restricted from many activities.

Juggling my school life and home life during the pandemic has proven to be a struggle.

What I didn't know was that I was also going to become a teacher, a security guard, a principal and a cafeteria worker overnight.

Students are not the only group of people who are struggling with the technological endeavors of distance learning.

Teachers have altered lesson plans, projects, and put in the effort to adjust teaching styles in order to make their students feel more comfortable and engaged.

I don't get to see any friends and teachers in person, but on the other hand, distance learning has been a lot more convenient because I get to do everything on my own time.

Even if I'm not in the studio.

I'm grateful to continue dancing, even if it's through a screen.

I've been trying to keep myself entertained after I am done with my schoolwork.

The hardest part of my life is to not know if my grandparents are doing OK.

Despite these challenges, there have also been some upsides.

I get to wake up whenever I want to, as long as I get my work turned it.

The biggest thing I found in this time is the ability to be gracious.

I finally realized how lucky I am to have the things I do.

There are brighter days ahead.

We just need to be patient.

We will finish strong.

I really am desperate to have a face-to-face conversation.

But for now, screen-to-screen will have to do.

Not even a global pandemic will stop me from doing what I love.

If we all pitch in and treat each other with aloha, we will get through this together.

[END]