Kanae O Ka Pua
Kānaʻe O Ka Pua - Words & music by Anthony K. Conjugacion
Aia i moku o Keawe
Ka ʻāina aʻo ka lehua
Me ka maile a‘o Pana‘ewa
E noho i ka pua mamo

Nohona i ka pua ka lehua mamo
E ‘ike aku i ka nani
No ka pua ka ‘ilima
Kāpili a e kā‘ana

Ho‘opili käua hāli‘ali‘a
Pāheahea i ka leo
O ka ua Kanilehua
Ho‘okipa a ka malihini

Mālie i ke kai a‘o Kūhiō
‘Auhea wale ana ‘oe
I uka i ke kuahiwi he leo
Ku‘iku‘i lima

A he leo wale nō o Kāna‘e
Ka lehua mamo i ka nani
Puana kō inoa
Nō Hilo Hanakahi
 There on the island of Keawe,
Land of the ‘ōhi‘a lehua
With the maile of Panaʻewa,
Dwells a rare lehua mamo (yellow) flower

Residing here is the lehua mamo,
Revealing its beauty
By the ‘ilima blossom
One bounds in a common love

Together you and I shall recall fond memories
Of an inviting voice
Of the Kanilehua rain,
Welcoming the visitor

In the calm seas of Kühiö Bay,
Listen carefully
In the uplands one can hear the voice
Of the beating hand (kapa beater)

It is only with Käna‘e’s voice,
That of the rare lehua mamo
Praise your name,
Through Hilo of Hanakahi
Source: Tony C.- Manaʻo: Composed for a family member and master craftsman in Hawaiian tapa, pahu making and much more, Dennis Kānaʻe Keawe. The introduction to this talented individual was made by Mapuana & Kihei de Silva which the ‘ilima refers to in the 2nd stanza. The lehua mamo refers directly to Kāna‘e because his house on Wainohia street in Hilo, is one of the few that has a huge lehua mamo tree fronting it. Like the lehua mamo's rarity, so is the love, compassion, hospitality and aloha that Kāna‘e exudes. Copyright 1985, Publishing Mountain Apple Co.