Whenever we take time from our busy, hectic schedule to go away and let the Spirit of God lead us and guide us, we are following what Jesus Himself did. Often, we read in the Gospel, Jesus went to a quiet and deserted place to enter into prayer, seeking guidance from the Father to fulfill His mission.

This is what I did. I made Our Lady of Florida my home last week-end. It was shorter than I expected. But, I had a great moment of solitude and prayer at this holy place.

I took this time to slow down, to be quiet, to be silence, and let God speak to my heart.

I had conversations with friends in our quest to better ourselves and to live a better life with less regrets.

It’s important for me to listen and be attentive to where the Spirit may lead me and to what He may reveal to me in these days.

The retreat director invited us to reflect on this following conceptual framework:

Believe what you read (in the Bible)

Teach what you read

Practice what you teach.

Here is the content of his reflection inviting us to use our own real life stories, our wounds,  our situations to share with others.

I invite you to do the something, to share your experience with others in whatever way you can, and live the life you’ve always wanted.

God bless,

Roosevelt

 

 

I am blessed this week-end to have a good moment of a spiritual retreat at Our Lady of Florida Spiritual Center in North Palm Beach, Florida. This comes at a good timing when I need some time to reflect and ponder about this thing called life and beyond.

God’s timing is always right.

I felt serene and at peace with myself and others for the mourning moment of my dad’s passing away. I did not weep, or drop my emotional countenance, only after the funerals when meeting with my brothers and sisters, all together, in an hotel room.

It’s always tough to address emotional wounds among family, but at the end, this is the greatest fun.

I drove with some friends yesterday from Fort-Lauderdale to Palm Beach. One of them told the story of his family. He mentioned one of his brothers he has not spoken with for years and would like to be in peace with.

His brother’s son was in a car accident, and this pushed him to call. And they have been speaking since.

I said to myself “in my family, at least we talk.”

Our retreat director told us last night to “give ourselves this week-end to listen to what the Lord has to tell us.”

“Lord, what else do You want to tell me to transform my life?”

“What’s the special gift I would like to receive from the holy moment I will be passing here?”

Those are the questions our retreat director invites us to ask ourselves, and to reflect upon.

We are called to serve, we are all servants to one another.

This is a moment for me to just listen to my internal compass, to read, and to prepare myself to live the life I am called to live.

How should I live between now and then?

I invite you to ponder as well on these questions, to slow down, and to think.

Please, pray for me.

Thank you.

Have a blessed Saturday.

Roosevelt

The following was my latest words for my dad’s funerals in Port-au-Prince last week. I call it “El Bricon: from womb to tomb.” This is in a nutshell his life story. I’m excited to share more about him and those closed to him in an upcoming book to reveal his memoir, and keep his story alive, and fulfill, for myself, a sense of purpose, and accomplished mission.

I am glad to have listened to his story to the last moment. I missed some moments. But, I cope with what I have, and what others told me.

Our story makes us who we are. We are the best ones to tell our own story in our own words.

I spoke in Creole. I’m just recopy the words I wrote on paper the way I wrote them. I’m asking my friends to volunteer and translate them in French or English for a wider audience.

For this blog, I mostly write in English. This is an exception.

Thank you.

RJF

_____________________________________

Reveran Pè Johnson Thévenin,

Zanmi, Fanmi

Frè-m, Sè-m,

Jou ki 6 Desan’m 1930, Erick Jean-Francois fèt nan Chanbellan, yon komin Jérémie, ki nan depatman GrandAns.

Papa-l, Vénélas Ladouceur Jean-Francois, te yon kiltivatè. Manman-l, Marie-Anne Europe Juin, yon komèsan.

Yo te rankontre nan mache Moron.

Vénélas al Kiba nan Zafra. Li kite Europe  nouris leve Erick pou kont-li. Lè-l tounen, ti gason-an te gentan gen 5 an.

Erick swiv manman-l toupatou.

Li kòmanse lekòl nan Chambellan. Apre, la-l Moron. Epi, li fè kèk klas segondè nan Jérémie.

Li te oblije kite lekòl pou-l fè monte desan’n ak manman-l ki tap grandi komès li nan Pòtoprens.

Nan lane 55, yo deside rete Pòtoprens, kote yo louvri yon boutik sou bòdmè-a tou pre kote wharf Jérémie an te ye a lepòk. Se Epicerie Dieu Tout Puissant ki te nan angl Boulva La Saline nan pwent ri Makajou.

Erick eseye anpil ti mete tankou mekanik, tayè, mannèv, jouskaske l-rive rantre nan gad la kòm rekri nan Kan Lamaten, Kafou.

Apre 9 mwa fèmen nan kan, li komisyone sòlda, epi-l anrole nan Kazèn Desalin, kite-l fè yon long karyè militè.

Se nan papòt Kazèn Desalin, kote-l tap monte lagad, an 1958, li te resevwa yon bal nan zèpòl goch li, lè kòmando Paskèt, Dominique, Perpignan tap eseye yon panzou pou ranvèse prezidan Francois Duvalier.

Kòmando-a te rive rantre nan Kazèn nan. Se yon lòt sòlda ki tap fè gad avè-l, ki rive trennen-l nan san-l, lage-l nan sal ofisye dijou-a, ki sove lavi-l.

Yo te opere-l nan lopital militè. Li viv ak bal la andan’n tout rès vi-l.

Apre operasyon an, pandan-l tap repran’n li, li retounen al bay manman’l koutmen nan boutik la nan kwabosal.

Se nan boutik la, yon aprèmidi, li rankontre yon bèl jèn dam, de grande taille, ki sot La Tremblay, komin Croix-des-Bouquets, ki vin’n achte.

Yo koze. Rès la se yon bèl istwa, na rakonte-w nan yon lòt okazyon.

Dam sa-a, se manman’m, Elucianne Momplaisir, ki rive marye ak papa-m, Erick, nan lane 1961.

Ansan’m yo fè 11 pitit. 3 mouri nan pasaj. 2 mouri nan dènye lane sa yo. Manman’m te mouri an 1984. Frè-m Erickson Jean-Francois mouri an 2009; Gransè nou Edeline Jean-Francois, nou pa wè-l depi jou tranbleman tè-a 12 Janvye 2010.

Map, mande nou, silvouplè, pou nou pran yon ti moman, rekèyman, nan memwa moun sa yo.

Mèsi.

Nou rete 7 jodi-a.

Mwen-n men-m Roosevelt ak madan’m mwen, Marie-Josee, ki la-a;

Yanick ki la-a;

Luc-Daniel ak madan’m  li Nathalie, ki la-a;

Marc-Eddy ki la-a;

Marie-France ak mari-l Yves Bellevue, ki la-a;

Aderson ki la-a, ak madam-m li Geromina;

Abacuse (dènye pitit El Bricon apre lanmò manman-m);

ak pitit pitit nou yo: Jonathan, Cassandre, Axel, Sophie, Erick, Olivier, Stéphanie, Christopher, Sebastien, Alex.

Sa-a se fanmi dirèk nou. Men Brick se te papa bon kè pou tout moun: zanmi ki pase lakay, fanmi ki vin’n fè la descente lakay. Pòt li toujou lovri. li toujou prèt pou-l padone. Li toujou gen yon ti souri sou bouch li. Sa-a se Brick.

Vi nou se te yon vi nòmal. Papa-m se jandam nan kazèn; manman’m se machan’n nan boutik la. Kòm nou pat ka al nan kazèn nan tout tan, nou te toujou ak manman’m nan boutik la.

Nou pase anpil katye nan Pòtoprens: ri Joseph Janvier, Nan Cite- Delmas 10, ak baz la ki se Rue Fourchard # 51, nan Kafou fèy.

Papa-m the chwazi 2 kalite lekòl pou nou. Ti fi yo al ka mè Bèlè ( Notre Dame du Perpétuel Secours au Bel-Air) nan tèt ri Makajou, ti gason yo al sou Bisantnè kay frè yo (Ecole Jean XXIII des frères du Sacré-Coeur). Lè nou vin’n pi gran, fi yo al Saint-Francois d’Assise, gason yo al Canado. Kèk nan nou al nan lòt lekòl takou: Henry Premier, Wetsèl Pierre-Louis, Petit Séminaire Collège Saint-Martial, Catts Pressoir.

Nou vin’n rele papa’m Papi Brick se apre kèk jou nou fè nou pat wè-l paske-l te rete konsignen nan kazèn.

Istwa Non Brick la sòti nan yon emission blag Fito Popo te anime chak swa a 8è sou radyo Progrè ki te anba 2èm avni sou granri. Fito Popo te gen yon piblisite ki di “O… apa Brick tounen…” epi gen yon lòt vwa ki repon’n “kòm si-l tale”.

Apre 2-3 jou konsignen nan kazèn, El Bricon rantre lakay. M sonje, tout ti noun yo kontan pou al salwe-l, epi m di, byen fò “O… apa Brick tounen…”, e pi-l repon-l ak yon ti vwa kè kontan “kòm si-l tale”.

Depi lè sa-a non Brick la tou rete. Nou vin’n mete El Bricon avèk yon slogan: El Bricon, que es un hombre que nunca faya…

El Bricon, que es un hombre que nunca faya vle di pou nou se yon nèg ki toujou pran responsablite-l, ki gen disciplin.

Li pa jan-m gen lòt djòb. Apre kazèn nan, li transfere assistant chèf polis nan Okap, epi li rantre nan Gran katye Jeneral kote-l jwen-n retrèt li nan lane 1987.

Apre retrèt li, li mennen yon vi pezib lakay li. Li vin’n pèdi chan vizyon-l ak maladi glocòm.

li te viv rès vi-l avèg. Men l develop yon memwa ekstraòdinè: li sonje tout dat fèt tout moun, pitit ak pitit pitit, dat mayaj, nimero telefòn ni sa kap viv isit tankou sa ki laba.

Li vin’n gen yon pasyon pou zafè legliz. Li te renmen chante. Li te men’m rive konpoze yon chante.

Se yon chante li chante chak fwa nou invite-l pase yon moman ak nou. Depi-l fin’n fè lapriyè, fòk li chante chante sa-a ki gen 4 kouplè ak yon refren pou’l repran’n 4 fwa.

Se toujou yon pale lè nou pral mange ansan’m pou’n di “El Bricon ou mèt priye. Men,  ou pa bezwen chante tout chante a non”. Repons li “pa gen pwoblèm”. Priyè ka pi kout, men pou li chante se priye 2 fwa.

Erezman pou ou maten an, m pa sonje tout kouplè yo, men’m ta kontan repran’n yon pati nan refren chante sa-a ke-l rele “Si nan lavi te gen lanmou Jezikri”.

——-

Si nan Legliz, te genyen lanmou Jezikri,

Renmen pwochen-w jan ou renmen tèt ou,

Ou ta an jwa-a,

Chak jou ou tap priye,

Gras tap desan’n an abondans.

Si Kris la vi’n jwen’n nou nan division,

nou pap sove-e,

Si kris la vin’n jwen’n nou nan pale moun map,

nou pap sove-e….

Nou pap dove-eeeeeee…..

———

Erick Jean-Francois, Papi Brick, El Bricon kite anro fas la tè-a jou jedi 13 Octòb 2016 a 10è nan Mattoon. Soufrans sou tè-a fini pouli.

Nan nom fanmi Jean-Francois, ak tout lòt fanmi ki afekte pa dèy sa-a, tankou fanmi Casimir, Salnave, Bellevue, laborite, Juin, map di nou tout yon gwo mèsi.

Mèsi pou tan sa-a nou pass ansan’m pou nou tande istwa Erick Jean-Francois, El Bricon, que es un hombre que nunca…. nunca faya.

M swete ou jwen-n nan istwa sa-a yon rezon pou-w pataje istwa pa-w, istwa fanmi-w, pou la vi-w rive konekte ak lòt pou pote plis limyè kote ki gen fè nwa  anro fas la tè-a.

Nou pral depoze rès kò-a nan Parc du Souvenir, Tabare. Nou invite-w, si-w kapab, vin-n akonpagne Erick Jean-Francois, jusqu’à cette demeure.

E m ta mande nou bat yon gwo bravo pou vi sa-a nap selebre jodi-a.

Mèsi.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a standing open meeting in Fort Lauderdale last Tuesday night in the aftermath of the first ever HAITIAN creole leadership convention.

The rain did not stop almost 100 people to gather at the conference room to listen to the Life Leadership program and its compensated community which aims at setting people free in several areas in their life.

Here are some pics for this open meeting :

Hundreds of Haitians, mostly from Haiti, and its diaspora flocked to Broward Convention Center, in Fort-Lauderdale, Florida, to participate in the first ever creole Life Leadership Convention, last week-end (August 26-28, 2016)

Here are some highlights of this moment:

This big event kicked off with a bible study, and a talk on emotional intelligence to build character, attitude, self- esteem.

Contents and audios of this first ever creole Life Leadership Convention and thousands of hours of leadership audios (English, Spanish) are available for souscription  on Life Leadership app.

Life Leadership is a premier leadership company  which main target is to help people live the life they’ve always wanted by building compensated communities through which flow products and services based on transformational information, education.

I just competed in the toastmasters evaluation, and humorous speech contests in Fort-Lauderdale this Saturday morning. I feel a sense of accomplishment to have been on the podium, making new friends, facing my fear, and understanding I could have been better.

This is my third participation at a speech contest. There’s a feeling I like at the beginning, and at the end of the process that I’d like to share with you.

It starts at the club level. My mentor DTM (Distinguished Toastmaster) Kip Barkley proposed me to represent our club. Club VOICE. (www.clubvoice.org). I accepted and started with ideas about a speech from nothing.

I built it up from a couple of ideas and from other club member’s ideas. I made a speech which had at the moment feedback. I repeated two times at a mock contest in our club.

The more time is approaching, the deeper is that inside feeling goes. I can’t describe it. You have to be on the arena, as Truman said, to know it. 

This is that feeling you have a couple of seconds before the contest master calls your name, and the title of your speech. Your adrenaline pumps up. You’re by yourself on the podium with hundred of eyes peering on you.

But, the environment is supportive. Every body is wishing you well, and at the end they all tell you you did a good job. 

I wrote and rewrote several versions of my speech. I end up with this conclusion that an speaker pointed out. There are always three speeches in your speech: First, the one you prepare; second, the one you deliver; third, the one you wish you had delivered. You will carry the latter longer with you.

I came in third position and my mentor Kip Barkley shared his feedback with me passing me his notes and things I can do better.

I congratulate the winners. And I appreciate that I had an opportunity to compete and to be part of a community of winners looking to the best they can be.

Roosevelt

Some days you wake up, and you doubt yourself. You see clouds.  You are tempted to quit. You’re human. It’s natural. Normal. But, pursuing excellence is not normal. Achieving success is not natural.

The ones who have the gold at the Olympic Games prove us that success is not normal. 

I was having a conversation with a friend last night who told me a story of a singer who had throat cancer. She was tempting to quit singing. She doubted herself  with the pain, the arduous treatment she went through. But she kept on asking herself: “quitting to what!”

New York Times bestselling author Chris Brady, in his book PAiLS, told us a story of “a young boy who was bullied out of his lunch money each day. To defend himself, he enrolled in a karate class. At the end of the first week of lessons, the instructor charged him fifteen dollars for his services. The boy promptly quit karate and decided it was easier to just keep paying the bully than to pay to learn how to fight him.”

This is human to look for the easy way out. But, success has a price. What do you want? What does it cost? Will you pay it?

These are critical questions to help you live a life of purpose.

We are living in an age of purposelessness. This is also human to settle for less and develop careless habits that lead to mediocrity.

But, if we want to achieve excellence, we need to come to respect ourselves and fight through the doubts.

You will doubt yourself and just everything else. But keep going anyway and live the life you’ve always wanted.

Develop the stamina and the right mental attitude by reading good biographies and autobiographies, associating with like minded winners through conversations and audio learning.

Keep doing what you desire. Learn, grow, and better yourself with soft skills long enough, you will be a champion. 

God bless,

Roosevelt