Page 5 - Hawaii Island MidWeek - March 24, 2021

The Sky’s The Limit For Olayan Siblings
FROM PAGE 4
“So we plan to continue Tcreating music that will give people hope and joy,” Ammon adds.
And yet there are benefits to living in a home where the people are plentiful.
Turns out that improved family time was exactly what parents Caleb and Temple Olayan — an investor and real estate broker, respectively — had in mind five years ago when they quit their jobs and, with a handful of other souls in tow, relocated to the Big Island. The couple already owned a piece of property in Pāhoa with a fixer-upper on it, and it was there where they chose to plant their roots for the next three years.
things and reconnect again, especially with hula,” recalls Liahona. “I hadn’t done that in such a long time, and my mom bringing me back into it made me feel so good.
Two hours later, Ammon, then just 13, returned with his first composition — a tribute for Mother’s Day called I’m So Glad You’ re My Mommy — and performed it for the family. The moment was like a revelation for Liahona, who immediately started penning her own ditties and teaching herself how to play the piano.
he average number of people in an American household last year
“There’s definitely always something to do, for sure,” ex- plains Liahona. “I can go to one of my sisters and be like, ‘Hey, you wanna go shopping?’ And she’ll be like, ‘Oh, yeah!’ Or, my brother can say, ‘Hey, you wanna go outside and play soc- cer?’ And I’ll be like, ‘Bring it on!’”
Since the fixer-upper was in no condition to live in — in part because the house had no running water and electricity — the family spent the first three months living in a tent in the backyard. During this time, they learned to work to- gether, clearing the property of its many trees and bushes, and sharing in the load when it came to raising goats and chickens, or picking papaya at a nearby farm for food. They even found joy in doing some of life’s simplest things, like using buckets of water to wash their clothes and dishes.
“But I was also grateful for the experience because it was very humbling,” she continues. “If it weren’t for our time there, I don’t think we would have figured out —.”
was 3.15, a mere tick over the numerical value of pi. Rudi- mentary math skills confirm that the people who occupy the Olayans’ home in Vineyard, Utah, far surpasses this figure by more than three times.
“Our love of music,” inter- rupts Ammon.
“When I first heard my brother sing his original song, it was super amazing to me,” she remembers. “I was like, ʻDang, this could actually work!’”
For Ammon, the eldest of eight children, he knows all too well what his two younger brothers will soon discover:
Like music, sports is one of the primary forces that make the Olayans’ world go ‘round.
“Right,” continues Liaho- na, “and how much it means to us.”
MARCH 24, 2021 HAWAI‘I ISLAND MIDWEEK 5
like that in the world, especial- ly among people our age being weighed down so much,” says Liahona.
“It’s always loud,” says Am- mon of his home’s ambiance. “There are always people eat- ing, and there’s always tons of dishes.”
er as a family,” adds Liahona, who thrives in seemingly all sports, including soccer, vol- leyball and basketball — not to mention lesser-played ac- tivities such as pickleball, pool and pingpong.
my mom realized that we had to learn to reconnect with the Lord. She realized that the more we got into society, the more we lost ourselves. She said, ‘You need to go back to where it all started. I’m going to show you how important it is to remember where you come from.’”
some hidden gifts.
“I got to learn so many
you go and write a song?’” he recalls. “So, I was like OK, be- cause I thought he was being serious.”
“We’re outnumbered — by a lot!” he sighs, noting that Baby No. 9 — another girl — is on her way.
“My dad’s side has more of the jocks and they all play sports,” shares Ammon, who counts football, soccer, bas- ketball and volleyball among his favorite pastimes.
At first, the move did not sit well with Liahona, who was just 12 at the time. But soon, she began to understand her parents’ purpose.
The siblings knew how mu- sically inclined their mom’s side of the family was, but it wasn’t until their days in Pāhoa that they finally understood they were beneficiaries of this legacy. According to Ammon, this is how their discovery of this hidden gift began:
Today, thanks to a Boom- ing song that’s being played on seemingly every platform, the possibilities for this broth- er-and-sister duo appear end- less.
Still, life in a large family has its own peculiarities be- yond the ratio of boys to girls.
“Basically, we love compet- ing and spending time togeth-
“They wanted us to get clos- er as a family and reconnect with our heritage, our roots and where we come from,” recalls Liahona. “Most importantly,
And as the family came to rely upon each other more and more, they rediscovered their cultural roots while uncovering
“It was like a rainy Sunday and I was being super lazy and my dad was like, ‘Brah, get up and do something! How about
Maybe Bryan was right af- ter all about the sky being their limit?
“This is just the beginning,” promises Ammon. “Our dream is really coming to life.”
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