Spreading Hula for Hope

Introduction

John:

I’m here today with Matt Del Rosario. Matt, I met you at the Newtown Senior Center. Unexpected, unannounced. I was there for something totally different, and you walked in, and invited a group of us to join you in a class. Could you please tell us about that class. It was the most amazing moment experienced in about a thousand years.

Matt speaks:

Thank you so much. So the class that you got experience is called Hula Noho, which is a seated Hula class, or a Hawaiian form of storytelling through dance and music.

The reason why I am here is to share hope, kindness and love. We all know in the current time there is a lot of the opposite going on. And I think we all can use a breath of fresh air. A breath of something new, of something exciting, and something based out of love, kindness, and storytelling.

So, the class that we got to move through is the Hawaiian art of storytelling.

It is called Hula Noho. And “noho” in the Hawaiian language means “seated” or “low.” And the reason why it is Hula Noho was, coming out of the pandemic, I was dancing Hula at a hospital in Hawaii, and all the residents were in wheelchairs. But I noticed that their arms were following my arms as I was dancing. And their smiles were brightening as I smiled.

So, after that performance, I walked back to the director of the program. And I asked them, “Could I come back and teach a free Hula class?”

And then it started to grow. Month after month, I was teaching this class. It grew into programs in other organizations.

And so I asked myself, “If the people in Hawaii loved this, would people on the mainland, in the world appreciate it as well?”

So, I decided to take a risk, come onto the mainland and share my aloha and the Hawaiian culture with as many people as I can, in hopes that we create a beacon of hope, love and goodness, kindness, compassion, empathy. So that’s why I am here.

By Matt Del Rosario

About the Author

Matt Del Rosario is founder of Flow Kakou Inc, a non-profit organization. Flow Kakou means "The balance of all things moving together."

website https://flowkakou.org
facebook https://www.facebook.com/FlowKakou/
youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-IXZyMVQnQ