We were lucky to catch up with Fedana Toussaint recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Fedana, appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?
God. I have been thinking about this a lot. I get told often that I am resilient, that someone who has been through as much as me shouldn’t be standing, shouldn’t be kind, shouldn’t be functioning. People are often surprised to find out how young I am because I’ve lived so much life and the truth is, there is no way that this strength is my own. It’s supernatural. It has to be. Experience could have destroyed me if I did not have some sort of supernatural support or intervention. It has to be God.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I am a writer. A vessel of stories, I house a lot of pain, joy, love, criticism, and it all shows up in my writing. I am honest and introspective, I don’t have a process, I am not married to any particular style. My voice is as authentic as the one I was born with. I don’t seek cadence, I simply exist and the art comes when it comes. I am hoping to publish a book and a chapbook before the end of the year, I also want to be more comfortable using my voice so I’m hoping to release an audio project whether it be a book or an album will be up to the creator. I am as simple as a human being that is sensitive to my environment and was gifted enough to be able to put it all into words.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
1. Honesty
Tell the truth, even if it hurts. Tell the truth specially when it hurts. Sometimes the lessons you learn can keep someone else from making the same mistakes. Sometimes the truth is the final piece of the healing. Sometimes your truth is what someone else needs so they don’t feel alone in their struggle.
2. Authenticity
Keep yourself in your craft. There are a million people that can probably do the same thing but they can’t do it like you can. You are your signature.
3. Isolation
Every group or collective is not your group or collective. Don’t be afraid to be alone. Sometimes you can only hear yourself in silence. Don’t be afraid of losing people by being yourself. You deserve to be seen in your entirety and not just when you’re performing your best. Isolation helps us heal. It helps us hear ourselves. It helps us cut out the noise.
My advice for beginners, something that I wish I was told early on and was better at, is to be careful. Be vigilant of your surroundings, of your friends, of your community. Everyone does not have your best interest at heart. Some
People see your gifts before you do and they get close to you to benefit from your presence and the possibility of your success. Be careful and be discerning. There are great people out there waiting to support you and your art, find them and don’t settle until you do. Do not compromise integrity for company.
What’s been one of your main areas of growth this year?
I think I’m stronger mentally. I have lost so much in the last 12 months and I have taken it at face value, not adding or removing anything from the truth of it all, allowing me to heal and to move on. I learned that grieving is action and isolation and sometimes grieving is putting the pen down and focussing on the person. I think I’m stronger than ever, I am better equipped for life and it’s obstacles, I have mastered my breath and I learned to swim in my tears instead of drowning in them. I’m ready for more because I let go of everything that I needed to.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Fefewrites
Image Credits
Pictures for quotes taken from Pinterest
