by Keri Kodama

One day, on the island of Oʻahu, the three ‘Io brothers were exploring an open market. There were colorful flowers, fresh fruits and vegetables, and many more exciting things for sale. They could hardly decide what to buy!

Just then, a loud voice called out to the customers, “Fresh fish! Cheap and tasty! Come and get it!”

The ‘Io brothers saw Seagull standing in front of a cart of fish. There were so many types! Salmon, tilapia, catfish, and more!

“You’ll love my fish!” Seagull said, pointing at his cart. “Buy some now! They’re on sale.”

“What do you think, brothers?” the first ‘Io brother asked. “Should we get some fresh fish from
Seagull?”

Just then, Auku‘u walked over. “Those fish aren’t fresh, and they aren’t in season,” she said. “They live far away and are brought to Hawaiʻi from across the ocean. If you want to have fish that is really fresh, I can give you some.”

“Oh! Local fish does sound much better. We would like that very much! Thank you,” said the third ‘Io brother.

Auku‘u lived in a little house by a loko i‘a, a Native Hawaiian fishpond where they practiced Indigenous aquaculture. She gave them some ʻamaʻama she had caught in the morning.

“This is delicious!” the ‘Io brothers exclaimed.

“Seagull sells the most fish at the market,” Auku‘u said sadly. “It’s hard for people like me to make money. But it’s important to support locally-sourced fish.”

“Why is that?” asked the ‘Io brothers.

Auku‘u explained, “To raise good, healthy fish, the water and the land surrounding it must be healthy, and the people who raise the fish know this. When you buy local fish, you are helping those who mālama ʻāina. And you become more connected to the land, your home, when you know where your food comes from.”

She pointed to the loko i‘a outside the house. “In the old days, there were many loko i‘a. They were all different, but they could hold many different kinds of native fish that people could eat, and there was enough to feed everyone.”

Auku‘u showed the ‘Io brothers around the loko i‘a. The rock walls were damaged. There were invasive plants clogging the water. The stream that provided fresh water from the mountains was polluted. She told them many stories about the loko i‘a that she learned from her kūpuna.

“My community has been helping me to restore the pond for a long time,” Auku‘u said. “It will take a lot of hard work and many more years, but one day, it will be healthy and full of fish. I dream of a healthy ʻāina that could provide for us all again.”

The ‘Io brothers wanted to help, of course! They went home and thought and thought until they were too tired. They went to bed thinking about Auku‘u’s stories.

In their dreams, they saw a big loko i‘a. The rock wall was sturdy and beautiful. The water was clear, and shimmering with fish. It was so full, the ‘Io brothers could walk across the water on the backs of the swimming fish!

Out of the water, an enormous lizard, a mo‘o, appeared. “I am the guardian of the loko i‘a,” she told the ‘Io brothers. “I will teach you about the fishponds.”

The mo‘o swam along the long, curving seawall. “Each loko i‘a is different. Some are built on the coast and enclosed from the ocean by a kuapā, a seawall. Some are built inland, filled with freshwater. Some are brackish, with a mixture of saltwater from the sea and freshwater from the land. Each type can raise different kinds of fish and plants.”

In the kuapā, there were openings that led out to the ocean. These openings each had a wooden gate, with small gaps to let the water flow in and out. Hundreds of tiny, sparkling fish crowded around the gates.

“These are the mākāhā, the sluice gates,” the mo‘o said. “They let water flow freely into the pond with the tides and carry small fish through the gates. The young fish come in and grow large and cannot leave. This is one way the pond gets new fish.”

The mo‘o leaned over the gate and swished her claw through the young fish. “The kia‘i loko is the pond’s keeper, and they are the expert on taking care of the loko i‘a. They know when and where is best to catch fish. They know how to keep the pond healthy and protect it.”

“Protect it from what?” the second ‘Io brother asked.

“Many things,” said the mo‘o. “Overfishing, pollution, invasive species. The kia‘i loko must maintain balance so that there will always be enough fish in the pond.”

The mo‘o continued, “From the mountains to the sea, everything works together to create a loko i‘a that is healthy and strong. If you pollute the land above, the pollution washes down streams that fill the ponds and make the native fish sick. Invasive plants will grow out of control and fill the ponds. Invasive fish push out the native species and eat all of the food so nothing else can grow. A healthy loko i‘a needs a healthy land around it.”

“How can the kia‘i loko take care of so many things by themselves?” the first brother asked.

“They cannot,” the mo‘o answered simply. “They are the expert, but everyone in the community must help with its care. Look at the kuapā. One person cannot build this. It took many people, passing rocks down for miles from the mountain to the sea. But working together, though, even immense ponds like this can be built, one stone at a time.”

The mo‘o carried the ‘Io brothers around the islands, showing them the farms, the kalo patches, the fishers out at sea. “The loko i‘a cannot feed Hawaiʻi alone. They are just one piece of building a resilient home—a home that can sustain the people who live in it. Everything must work together in balance.”

“Do you understand, ‘Io brothers? The kia‘i loko cannot fix the ponds alone either. Everyone must be kia‘i. You, your neighbors, your neighbors’ neighbors, and even the people across the sea must be protectors and caretakers of the land.”

The brothers remembered Auku‘u’s stories about her kūpuna.

“Because the people before us took care of the land, we are able to live on it,” the third brother
reflected. “Now we must take care of it for the people who will come after.”

“That’s right,” said the mo‘o. “Through the land, your ancestors take care of you. This is your home and your family, and it is up to you to look after it too. But now, it is time to wake up soon, ‘Io brothers, and I must go. But you can always find me again!”

The mo‘o swam back into the depths of the pond, disappearing under the sea foam.

When the brothers woke up, they discovered a stone in the shape of the mo‘o by their bed. “It was not just a dream!” the brothers exclaimed.

When they went back to the market, they excitedly told the stories of the mo‘o in their dream. The other people became curious, and even left Seagull’s shop to go and see Auku‘u’s loko i‘a.

Auku‘u was surprised to see so many new people, but she was happy that they wanted to learn more about the pond. She began to teach everyone what she knew about loko i‘a.

As the ‘Io brothers listened to Auku‘u, they saw in the water what looked like the mo‘o from their dreams.

“Remember, brothers,” the mo‘o told them, “just like the kuapā, you must build a resilient Hawaiʻi one piece at a time. Then, one day, your dream may come true…

…And you can walk on the backs of the fish once again!”