Taro Festival at State Capitol

As we approached, we could hear the knocking of stone pounders on wooden boards. When we turned the corner, though, we didn't expect to see as many as we did...40 some wooden boards lay in the middle of the State Capitol, some only large enough for one person to pound, others big enough for four or more to sit around, and others long and narrow and raised, like seesaws. Families, young and old convened for the largest unified gathering of Ku'i Kalo (pounding taro) to celebrate Hawai'i's living taro traditions. Every family, every board, every stone pounder could tell a story, about the power of tradition, about preservation, about kalo. And knowing how much Hawaiians love to talk story, what stories were being exchanged at that moment, over the methodical pounding?