lei poʻo

The term lei poʻo translates directly to "head lei" and refers to any garland worn around the crown of the head. It is widely used by hula dancers, graduates, brides, and anyone celebrating a significant milestone in Hawaii. While mainlanders and even some locals frequently call this a "haku lei," haku actually refers to a specific three-ply braiding technique used to make the lei, not where it is worn on the body.

Wearing a lei poʻo is a mark of honor and celebration. It is highly appropriate for graduations, weddings, birthdays, and May Day festivities. Culturally, a lei is a symbol of aloha and should never be thrown in the trash when it dries out; instead, the natural materials should be returned to the earth by hanging it on a tree branch, burying it, or returning it to the forest.

"Brah, watch the ferns! You crushing the ferns!" Keoni yelled from the back of the Tacoma, desperately trying to shield a massive Tupperware container from his cousin’s flailing elbows. They were dead stopped in the Kapaʻa bypass traffic, already twenty minutes late for the May Day rehearsal, and the cab of the truck was a disaster zone of loose ti leaves, half-eaten Spam musubis, and pure panic.

"Not my fault! Auntie Nani told me for hold the baby breath, but the AC stay blasting!" Malia shrieked from the passenger seat, aggressively adjusting the vents while simultaneously dropping a spool of floral wire under the seat. "If my lei poʻo comes out looking like one squashed centipede because you guys cannot sit still, I swear I going make you wear it in front the whole school!"

"Nobody cares about your head, Malia!" the driver, their older brother Ikaika, barked while slamming the horn at a rental Mustang that was trying to merge. "I just trying for get us to the gym before Mrs. Silva locks the doors! Just keep the water spray on the lei poʻo so the orchids don't die, and everybody shut up before I make you guys walk the rest of the way down Kuhio Highway!"