Henehene kou ʻaka
Kou leʻaleʻa paha
He mea maʻa mau ia
For you and I
Kaʻa uila mākēneki
Hōʻonioni kou kino
He mea maʻa mau ia
For you and I
I Kakaʻako mākou
ʻAi ana i ka pipi stew
He mea maʻa mau ia
For you and I
I Waikīkī mākou
ʻAu ana i ke kai
He mea maʻa mau ia
For you and I
I Kapahulu mākou
'Ai ana i ka līpoa
He mea maʻa mau ia
For you and I
Haʻina mai ka puana
Kou leʻaleʻa paha
He mea maʻa mau ia
For you and I
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Your laughter is so
contagious
It's fun to be with you
Always a good time
For you and I
The streetcar wheels
turn
Vibrating your body
Always a good time
For you and I
To Kakaʻako we go
Eating beef stew
Always a good time
For you and I
To Waikīkī we go
Swimming in the sea
Always a good time
For you and I
To Kapahulu we go
Eating seaweed
Always a good time
For you and I
Tell the refrain
It's fun to be with you
Always a good time
For you and I
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Source: Leilehua Yuen as told by Nona Beamer - This song connects back to Kamehameha Schools students who would ride the
street cars of Honolulu together. On one particular outing in the early
1920ˆs, Pono Beamer was taking his sweetheart, Louise Walker, on the new line along King Street from Farrington High School (near the first
Kamehameha campus) to Kakaʻako. Louise had never ridden a street car, so it
was a special excursion for the young couple. When the engine started up,
she became haʻalulu (shaken)! He put his arm around her to calm her down.
She was terribly embarassed by that - especially in front of all the other
students, so she jumped up and flounced off the car. Pono reminded her,
"Weren't you going with us to have some of my Aunty Mariah's (Mariah Desha
Auld) beef stew?" Enticed by the reputation of Aunty Mariah's delicious pipi
stew, Louise got back on the trolly. (That stew must have been VERY enticing
as, eventually, Louise and Pono married and had several children, among them
the renowned Nona Beamer) As they traveled by trolley and walked around the
districts of Honolulu, the students began making verses to tell the story.
Several students, later became well-known entertainers, musicians, and songwriters.The
song was copyrighted by at least two of them, Andy Cummings and Webley
Edwards. Hula translation by Kaʻiʻini Ga rza-Maguire
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