interest in learning our language is a good thing. however, please keep in mind something very important when learning the written olelo.
WE HAD NO WRITTEN LANGUAGE.
what you see on palapala is a very specific interpretation. learn it, but make certian you take everything you learn on paper with a grain of salt. it is the bane of kupuna, because its not true to who we are, not true to how we learn, and not true to our ways at all. to learn anything in this way, the textbook way, is very different and because of that, there is alot of discrepency. there is no "better or worse" here. its just different. like apples and oranges. the fact that we had no written language does not mean we were somehow compromised. quite to the contary. we had simply a different way to record and document, that is just as valid as the western method. hula, oli, mele, are some of these ways. this is why it is important not to take that for granted when learning the written version.
WORDS ARE ALIVE.
on paper, they are 2-d and practically lifeless, yet when spoken, they are given Ha, and can pull radical formations subject to change at any moment. this is something that has been lost in the minds and hearts of all people. to see a language as something specific and seperate from the host culture, is absolute hewa, because the language, IS THE CULTURE. and vice versa. we are what we do, what we say, and what is in our hearts. for instance, learning the language in this way without experiencing the culture, is like learning hula just for the dance. it may seem useful to you and those around you who have no clue and rely on you for their interpretation, but you will look like a bloody fool in front of those who know otherwise. and thats another thing, what you learn, you end up teaching either by choice or default. for most westerners, the major experts on Hawaiian culture are Elvis Prestley and Dorothy Lamour. this misrepresentation of our people has wreaked absolute havoc, and we try desperately to pick up the pieces of who we are in the minds of those who have been misguided by these false prophets. that is why it is so important to stay true to origin and not rely too heavily on new interpretations.
please keep these things in mind when learning language. ANY language. even the language you speak everyday. always approach something new with absolute respect. be it anything at all. a culture, a child, the computer you type on, the vehicle you operate. by being respectful, objective, and always a student, even if you are in a position of teacher, your mission on this earth, is to learn, to grow, and to experience, always in the spirit of aloha. even in this virtual realm, where it seems anonimity is a weapon, aloha should always be our focus.