Cuba - Peak Oil

Aloha Nō:

E kala mai for the late post. I have literally been in The Bush from Sydney to Ballina within four days with no Internet. The aboriginal people and or the Bundjalung People have been amazing to me. The Cuban Oil crisis is a perfect film to reflect on while I am among these indigenous people, the idea of having to come together as a people and sustain life by cultivating land and using the basic tools of our/their ancestor to live is completely relevant and worth discussing.

Down here in Australia or Nūhōlani in 'olelo Hawai'i, many of the aboriginal people live like us in homes, with their families, and have many land, language, and colonizational problems, yet there are many people who live in and on their tribal land. These people are magnificent!! They live off the land and ocean like they have done for many many years. They sustain life through hunting, fishing, knowing what the different seasons may bring and may not bring; for example some animals and fishes cannot be caught during certain times of the months. It is like our ancestors and some Kanaka that followed the moon cycle and the sun cycle, in which they knew how to keep the balance of nature. After meeting these Bunjalung People I thought about how they wouldn't need to relearn how to sustain life by cultivating land and living simple because they already know how to do so, they never lost their traditions from their ancestors in surviving and providing for their families from the land and sea. I am not saying that all aboriginals are capable of doing this and I am not saying that they are the only people that can survive by the ways of their ancestors, but this is what I witnessed within this tribe. It was quite amazing and very inspiring.

I do believe that when oil and or other goods that are imported to Hawai'i peaks or stop, that we would be "ok" in surviving. In the Cuban Oil Peak film I remember the young man who commentated most of the film said that, "it's not about the crisis at hand, but it's about the human relationships that are strong enough to over come and solve the problem!!" I thought that this was an amazing quote because if and when we are in a need to sustain life as a community, we will need to come together as people/humans to solve and keep life going. The aboriginal people have opened my eyes to the great culture and traditions that indigenous people have within the Pacific. I am so lucky and privileged to be apart of the activities of these amazing people of Ballina. I will post some photos soon, but many cultural performances and traditions are not allowed to be filmed or photographed, therefore I respected their rules, but I was allowed to take photographs of members of the tribes. Sorry for such a long blog but I am very excited to share what has been going on in the last couple of days!! See you all soon! A Hui Hou