Last month, I attended a class at our church to learn how to make a ti-leaf lei. This was something I have always wanted to learn. At the end of the class the teachers encouraged us to wear the lei we made to church the next day, so I did that.
That day, after class, I wanted to practice what I had learned so that I would retain the knowledge and skill. My husband helped me pick the leaves from our yard and together, we rinsed them off. Then I deboned (removed the center ribs) them and blanched them. Luckily, I was able to find pots big enough to do that.
Unfortunately, we had only picked enough to make one and a half leis. I don't remember how long it took me to make them, but the practice leis went into the refrigerator to be saved for another day.
On Sunday, one of our friends in our Sunday school class asked the class to come to his son's college graduation, because he wanted him to experience what a traditional Hawaii graduation was like. His son graduated from high school in 2020 and did not get to experience a "real" graduation with family, friends, and all the leis.
Since I now knew how to make a ti-leaf lei and we had lots of ti-leaves, we went out in the yard to pick more ti-leaves. I deboned them and was just about to blanch them, when the power went out. I stuck the leaves in the water that was just beginning to boil and hoped for the best.
This time I wanted to try a maile-style ti-leaf lei. During the class, I had watched another participant create one, I decided to give it a try myself. I cut strips from some of the deboned ti-leaves that had not been blanched and got to work. Some of the blanched leaves were partially blanched, they were still usable, but a little harder to work with because they weren't very soft.
Although, the power was out for about seven hours, I was able to make two maile-style leis in the dark.
One of was given to the graduate, to contribute to a "real" graduation experience, and the other was placed on my father-in-law's grave for Memorial Day, in honor of his military service.
The one and a half practice leis were placed on the graves of two other relatives for Memorial Day in honor of their service.
What began as a simple desire to learn a new skill turned into an opportunity to celebrate a milestone, honor loved ones, and continue a beautiful Hawaiian tradition. I'm grateful I took that class and look forward to making many more leis in the future.
