you can't evolve if there's no room for it
The first thing that comes to mind is working the lo’i (taro patches) at my uncle’s in Hawaii a couple of years ago. I felt so cool lol like actual the coolest taking my friends there and telling them ‘yeah uncle said we can jump in and do some mahi’ and well technically, we did. But our job… was to clear out all the old rows of kalo so that the more experienced workers could come in another time with the new plants.
we were the clean up crew…
What a privilege lol I’ll admit acknowledging that and the role we had in this process didn’t come right away. But we were “happy to be here”, we were in Hawaii after all, connecting with the taiao (environment) — connecting with tupuna (ancestors), the lands and the activities they once knew intimately. What a privilege. Our role in the process was to clear and create space for new life to grow.
Sure, if we weren’t there someone else would’ve done it so we aren’t the emphasis here haha what I mean is, that part of the process needed to occur first so the next phases could begin. The kalo couldn’t grow if there was no room for it. We couldn’t grow (in humility and understanding) had we not been allowed the opportunity for it.
Other experiences I’ve had with this notion is when holding onto mamae (hurt, trauma, grief), sadness, resentment or even expectations of ‘how things should be’ that don’t line up with how things are…
so how can the light and love flow into our lives when we’re already at capacity? If there’s no room for it?
The story of Ranginui and Papatuanuku’s separation provides a step by step framework to working through any situation in our lives. Separating from a physical thing, a mindset, feelings and emotions, past versions of ourselves or anything that no longer serves us (or its purpose) anymore.
I do think restriction or limitation of some kind serves as the catalyst for evolution. It precedes it in whakapapa (genealogy, process) and helps build capacity to take action and gain momentum… it’s up to us to figure out what restrictions are healthy and conducive to our growth and who, where, what we want to be.
Tēnā tātou,
Hana.