What happened to GRACE?

 

I’d like to start with the best first and won’t save it for last… In the few months since my return home, I often smile remembering the friendship that was shared in the various cities I visited this summer. Although lyrics to Haitian music often accuse friends of backstabbing and double crossing, I will sing a different tune here and describe special multi-generational friendships that unite Haitians around the world. I would not be surprised if other Caribbean nations related to this precious cultural value.

It’s sometimes difficult to explain to friends in the US relationships back home. For Haitians, family is extended and goes something like this:

• Closest family (from both grandparents down) and
• Closer family (first, second and third degree cousins) and
• Close family (your parent’s childhood friends and their children – who often are your best friends).

Most people I know have close friends who are the children of their parents’ friends; I’m talking here multi-generational friendships.

The GRACE 2010 summer tour began with a bang.  Thanks to my Atlanta Douyons and the Atlanta HaitianAlliance, friendships like blasts  from the past multiplied guests lists and were essential in making events memorable. The first evening, cultural elements about our First Peoples as well as Caribbean racial characteristics  were shared and historical factoids were presented as points of interest. Translating Haitian proverbs from English back to Creole proved challenging and had been included for entertainment.

First Church is a spiritual family; this Atlanta institution with a longstanding tradition in the African American community opened the doors of their place of worship and accepted GRACE and Mystical Caribbean Mission. We presented the youth club music videos telling a story of the Caribbean through contemporary music with Bob Marley and reggae (Jamaica), Celia Cruz and salsa (Cuba), Wyclef Jean and hip hop (Haiti) and Tego Calderon and reggaeton (Puerto Rico).

 

Atlanta

Welcoming homes in Buckhead, inspiring rose-gardens in Snelville, delicious dinners and entertaining barbeques in Alpharetta and unforgettable boat rides were hosted by friends with open hearts and minds. That extra special care went into every book signing. Without a doubt, Atlanta’s warmth combined with Caribbean sunshine created a wonderful niche for GRACE and the CaribanStories Trilogy in one of the fastest growing cities in the USA.

My next stop was Boston. The cut-iron collection especially designed for the Grace Summer Tour was late for Atlanta and would be introduced in this New England state. I hung them all up before unpacking my suitcase. The mysteries crowded the walls of my room and the series’ symbols had found a home with our family in Boston.

Somehow, great cooking skills must be passed along with DNA and would be reason enough to overstay the family welcome. Getting in sync with ProfCover was crucial to optimize the writing and editing of the next book, Canela Turns. Paving the way for book two, Grace journeyed to meet friends in Boston and opened important doors for Canela. Mr Alix Cantave was friendly and interested in promoting GRACE and the CaribanStories collection at Boston University. Mr. Maurice Gordon, the Mattapan head librarian, kindly showed us the spacious and attractive youth room, presented the coordinator and invited the CaribanStories to give a presentation of book 2, CANELA Turns when in Boston next time.

Boston MA

Five (5) copies of GRACE, the Mystical Caribbean Mission are now available at the Mattapan Library.

Must have been my Lucky Star, a bus ride seat by the toilet and I landed in China Town, NY. That evening was spent climbing through the branches of the family tree and shaking down some skeletons that made my niece’s eyes pop out; part of the journey is to flick on switches…

However, Long Island NY’s shock and awe that weekend was the heat wave; at 110 degrees I watched the green melt off the grass! Yet so cool were the comforting presences of childhood friends and the wonderful surprise of having the Pikliz Art Show hosted in the home of a player I knew during my highschool volleyball days.

Pikliz Art Show N. Y.

A playful group effort provided the entertainment that day and my friends submitted their brains to the gymnastics of a crossword puzzle with Haitian riddles and English clues. The day ended with a weekend pool party and friends, friends of friends and their children and their friends eating grilled lobster and sipping the best daiquiris this side of Little Cuba.

The USA capital Washington D.C. was the icing on the cake of a great summer tour experience. Well-connected Caribbean Blue entrepreneurs marketing innovative technology in a biodegradable water bottle Caribbean Blue® sponsored GRACE, The Mystical Caribbean Mission at Zanzibar, a trendy D.C. club. A nice turn out of beautiful people made me look great in all the pictures Jonathan (NoRae Photography) took, and was an important measure of the success for the evening. Also noteworthy, the book was able to break out of the group of my captured readers - my friends and their friends, to reach people who did not know me before that venue. The trivia game invented for entertainment that evening was won by Judelande Hyppolite, a member of the Caribbean Professional Association that was hosting an event in another room at Zanzibar that evening.

Thank You for your participation

Last on my tour stops was “Bain de Culture”, a well-organized party hosted by Sandra Paul Blanc, a friend I knew in high school in Haiti who now lives in Laurel Md. Among other things, it was a pleasure to participate in this event with my sister Daniele who sold her original handcrafted jewelry. A packed crowd loaded with hearty energy broke the deck on the second dance. Spirits did not sink, however. Good thing the dj respected the uniformed men who asked that the volume remain lowered…

Washington D.C.

Exposure during that evening and in the many Facebook photo albums that followed spread the word about the book, the author and the adventure well beyond the American capital.

I could never have organized this summer tour without my family and friends. Many thanks to Madidi, Frantz, Zito, Guy, Karen, Saurel, Dominique, Maisha, Chad, Angélique, Steve, François, Jessie, Daphnée, Jean Marc, Alain, Paul, Danièle, Rudy, Guileine, Varek, Sandra and Chantou, we have connected three countries and four states and created a network for Lakou Grace, mystical messengers on a mission to spread the word about Caribbean vibes, First People and our take on 2012.

Canela has already begun her journey and I can now finally devote most of my time and energy to her adventures.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Advertisement