Cast Safely Ashore — Samoan Proverb Tee

Ia lafoia i le alogalu.
"May you be cast on the land side of the reef."

This alagaupu (Samoan proverb) draws on the image of a canoe steering through a narrow, dangerous passage in the reef, where currents and breaking waves make the crossing risky. The alogalu is the calm, lagoon-side face of a wave just before it breaks — the safe water beyond the danger. To wish someone "ia lafoia i le alogalu" is to bless them with safe passage through a hard undertaking; the same phrase is also spoken with joy once a difficulty has actually been overcome. It's a proverb about being carried safely through the roughest part of the crossing.