Lili Dauphin

I saw someone the other day
“Hi! How his your life?”
“Ah! My life is not great today
it’s overflowing with strife”
“You can be content?”
“How can I do that?”
“You can repaint”
“Repaint what?”
“Your thinking”

We can be content
If we stop the complaint
And embrace the complement
Laughter is a great accent
And the best way to vent
Complaint may cause restraint
Which may turn to torment
Laughter is a great treatment
May provide our hearts with aliment
And our life with nourishment
Being content does not cost a cent
Only minor effort to implement
We don’t always have to lament
Because we are a beautiful ornament

A few of us are hiking in the night. We are laughing, joking and happy. Soon, we walk to the top of a very steep peak so we can enjoy the city view. I look back and notice one of my hiking buddies is sitting alone in the back.

“Are you okay?” I ask

“Yes. But I can’t go because I have a fear of height.”

“You can do it, I‘ll hold your hand.”

“I conquered my fear of water but not my fear of height.” She whispers.

“I conquered my fear of height but not my fear of water.” I smile.

Soon we are both on top of the mountain enjoying the view.

“You did it, I‘m proud of you.” I yell.

“Thank you for your kindness.” She beams.

It takes courage to face a fear

Bravery is so very dear

Even when it causes a tear

We don’t need to stay in the rear

We just have to use our inner gear

Because courage is always near

During the hike, she may have thought of the long list she’s been thinking about.
“How can I do it all?” She murmured.
I thought of my own very, very long list for a while and turned to her.
“You will find a way.” I giggled
“Yeah! You are right. I always have.”

She had the answer all along. And there was not much to say. It’s not the length of the list that matters but rather the will to conquer the list.

I’ll do my best
The first step is the test
Life should not be a contest
When tired, I’ll rest
I won’t even protest
In the end, I’ll reach my quest

Sainte Elaine is a small community inside the city of Belleville. The houses of Sainte Elaine are made of cement and cinder blocks to withstand hurricanes because Sainte Elaine is surrounded by water and located near a very large savannah that often overflows during rainstorms.
The place is beautiful. Its streets are all paved and lined by large, tall palm and oak trees. There probably are more basic necessities here than in Tiville or Belleville because Sainte Elaine is a tourist attraction.
This small locality takes its name from a woman named Marie Elaine Rousseau who helped the poor and needy her whole life. After two dozens miracles and twenty appearances, the people declared her a saint and named the city after her.
Her last appearance left an imprint of her face on one of the large palm trees near the seashore. This site attracts several hundred people from every part of the island, and perhaps even from other places, every year.
As I walk along the streets of Sainte Elaine, I keep my eyes open for Auntie Nana. She sometimes comes here to sell her mangoes, avocadoes, and plantains. She’s so late that I’m starting to wonder if she won’t even come for me. I continue walking by the beach.
I notice the tall palm tree with Sainte Elaine’s face on it. A large crowd surrounds it. Standing on top of someone’s porch across the street, I observe the tree from a distance, watching it without blinking.
I don’t know if it’s my imagination or I am simply losing my mind but I see the saint’s smiling face being lifted slowly from the tree, past the crowd, and flying towards me as if reaching out. Her face is radiant and her smile is unforgettable. Even her big purple eyes smile as they stare at me. The face moves closer and closer and I am growing more and more scared. I jump down to the street and start walking backwards.
“Oh no! Go back, please,” I beg the beautiful face, as I walk away from it. But it continues to come my way. “Oh no, she’s smiling at me still. I think I am going to run as fast as I can away from beautiful Sainte Elaine.”
I take off running without looking behind me, bumping into several merchants in my haste to disappear. Then because I’m not looking where I’m going, I smash so hard against one woman that her entire basket of grits falls to the ground.
“Gade! Gade! Gade! Gade! Bondye papa mwen! Jezy! Mari! Jozef! Ak tout sin yo (Look! Look! Look! Look! God My father! Jesus! Marie! Joseph! And all the other saints)!” she yells. “Map toue ou pitit (I am going to kill you, little one)!” The woman takes off running after me. Does she want to beat me up?
Now not only am I running from Sainte Elaine, I am also running from an angry merchant. I continue going without looking back. Still beating my feet on the ground, I turn to see if the woman is continuing to follow me. But she has given up, too tired to go on, I guess. However, her mouth is still running. Then I see her turn, babbling the last of her obscenities while looking at her poor grits on the ground.
“Crazy kid, I’ll put a spell on you, one on your mama, one on your papa too, your cousins, your brother, your sister and all of them. Tone boulem (May lightning strike me),” I can hear her saying out loud.
By the time her voice blends into the noise of the crowd, I am already far enough away on the beach so she can’t hurt me. I turn and notice that the saint’s face has also departed. They have both vanished into the crowd. I want to go back to help the merchant pick up her grits, but I am scared that she might beat me up. I feel bad about her merchandise taking a fall like that.

I love “My First Sin?” she says to me. “I really enjoyed reading the story. Oh Wow! You must have had an amazing childhood.” She smiles.
“If you only knew.” I want to say to her.

It’s not about our circumstances but it’s how we handle them. In “My First Sin”, we see Tilou facing one trial after another, yet she always manages to be brave. Life is like a beautiful flower. If we can nurture it, we’ll always be able to enjoy all of its blossoms.

Three months ago, Desperado got fired from his job. Three weeks ago, his wife left him for Ti-Macho, his old boss. Wiffie took off with Doggie, Kitty and Birdie. Three days ago, his house got repossessed.
“I have nothing left to live for. I am the poorest man alive, therefore, I shall end it all.” He shouts.
Desperado has only two dollars to his name. He purchases a large mango because he does not wish to die hungry. He walks to the park. There, he finds a large tree. Perching atop the tree, he starts to eat his mango. As he is throwing the peels down, he notices a hand picking them up. He looks carefully and comes face to face with Despair.
“ Thanks for diner. You’re not the poorest man alive.” Says Despair.
“I am going to kill myself because I have nothing to live for.” Says Desperado.
“Ah! But you have something very precious to live for. You have life.”
“What is life, if I’m not happy.”
“Give me life and I’ll find happiness.” Responds Despair.
“You already have life.”
“I only have three days to live.”
“I am sorry.” Says Desperado.
“Now, stop complaining! Be grateful instead. Come down now. Go and enjoy being alive.” Yells Despair.
Desperado hugs Despair and walks away with a new attitude.

The other night, I saw an old friend at the grocery store. At first, I did not recognize her. She looked aged and disheveled. Then she walked to me.
“Hi, forgive my long absence, I’ve been going through stuff.” She whispered.
Before I could ask her about the stuff, she interjected.
“My fiancé married my best friend. I have not been myself ever since.” She sobbed.
I offered her a hug.
“I am scared and I feel so lost. I don’t know if I’ll ever find myself again.” She cried.
“You will find yourself again.” I encouraged.
“How?” She asked.
“By believing that you can.”

AILING SOUL

I’ve known her to always be content
For her, laughter had no restraint
In her heart, there was no rant
Happiness was always her true intent

I have not seen her in a while
I became concerned in the meanwhile
Because that’s not her style
Soon, her trouble became a huge pile

Her teardrops left a long throng
When betrayal came along
Leaving in her heart a sad song
Even though she tried to be strong

‘I’ll never love again’
She finally admits her chagrin
“In my heart, there is a raging rain
All my efforts in love have been in vain

El fue mi orgullo (He was my pride)
Together we had a great a ride
All alone, I now must face this great stride
At this moment, my sadness is wide

I feel as though I’ve lost ‘me’
My heart is devoid of glee
I feel as small as a pea
Will I ever again be free?

For now, I can only try my best
To deal with my life’s conquest
Hopefully this is only a test
I hope my soul will soon rest”

Some of us may take kindness for granted. We may see it as a threat.
“Oh no! I don’t deserve, therefore, I shall hurt those who are kind to me.”
That’s exactly what Ingrata did to Kinda after she saves her life by pulling her out of a burning car. Kinda is hurt deeply because she doesn’t understand this kind of ingratitude. Kinda is now very stingy with her kindness. In fact, she puts her kindness inside a safe at the local bank and hides the keys inside her grand-mother’s bra. Grandma lives fifty thousand miles away. She has no access to a mail office.
A simple act of kindness needs not be threatening but should instead be
Appreciated.
In “My First Sin” Tilou cares for Ana while others forsake her. In return, Ana hurts her because Ana is not used to kindness. Tilou continues to share her kindness everywhere she goes in spite of her bad experience with Ana. Everyone handles their experiences differently.
Not everyone on this planet is like Ana or Ingrata. In fact, I want to show appreciation right now. Thank you to all of you for supporting this blog. I appreciate your nice comments. Your kindness is greatly appreciated.

SWEET KINDNESS

Some can’t appreciate kindness
It may trigger inner wretchedness
Which may in turn fuel deep madness
May even cause her to be powerless
Because she’s not capable of gratefulness
She has to face her own consciousness
Which may be obscured by blindness
And profoundly protected by selfishness
May possibly even leave her breathless
Because she’s doesn’t understand awareness
Whatever our experiences may be with “kindness”
It’s still better to promulgate thoughtfulness

Every time someone says no to Rejecta, she gets angry and depressed for days.

“I don’t get the job because I am worthless.” She sobs.

“It’s not personal.” I say.

“Of course it is. They don’t hire me because I am too dumb.” She shouts.

“You give up too easily.” I say.

Everyone handles rejection differently. First I smile then I invite a couple of friends over and celebrate with good rice with beans and laughter. Once the celebration is over, I am ready for a new approach, one that’s more creative. Sooner or later someone will say yes. And someone always does. That’s just the way it is. As long as you don’t give up, someone will eventually say “yes.”

In “My First Sin” Tilou remains courageous no matter what.

Next time, someone says no to you, say yes to “yourself” and you’ll soon see what can happen with the right attitude.