ARCHIVE SERIES #0010: ASD [NOW MORE THAN EVER]
"He aliʻi ke aloha, he kilohana e paʻa ai."
Love is like a chief: the best prize to hold fast to.
"ALOHA SERVED DAILY." Itʻs an adage we have been expressing since the very inception of FITTEDʻs existence, dating all the way back to 2007 and has since become ubiquitous, weaving itself into the fabric of the local culture of Hawaiʻi. Although we may have organically envisioned the concept of Aloha Served Daily, we in no way claim to own it. Just as it is with the words "love" or "aloha," the motto is not something that can be simply possessed.
Aloha Served Daily is intangible; itʻs a way of life, the way one behaves, how one conducts themselves.
An early blueprint of this lifestyle can be found in an old ʻōlelo: "Ko koā aka, ko koā kai," meaning those of the upland, those of the shore. In ancient Hawaiʻi, family and friends would exchange goods, with denizens of the uplands bringing items such as poi and taro to those who made their homes near the sea. Shore dwellers in turn gave them fish from the sea. "Visits were never made empty-handed but always something from oneʻs home to give."
Itʻs the way we selflessly help others, with no expectations in return. Itʻs the random acts of kindness, such as when we offer up our seat on the bus to kupuna, the way we console friends, family, and even strangers after a tragedy, helping Aunty with that shopping cart full of groceries into their cars or homes, itʻs love and compassion impetuously being dispensed without thought, and expands across generations.