Podcasts about Kibeho

Dr. Tom and Kari Curran talk about being alert to communication from heaven, inspired by a surprising Ring camera photo. The Currans share a few saint quotes speaking into their lives today and give steps for confessing to God, as referenced in The Boy Who Met Jesus: Segatashya Emmanuel of Kibeho.

Par le Père Jean-Pierre Gatete, chapelain du Sanctuaire de Kibeho

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Par le Père Jean-Pierre Gatete, Chapelain du Sanctuaire Notre Dame des Douleurs de Kibeho

2024-11-28 Chapelet mondial - Basilique de Kibeho by Radio Maria France

Ref.: Bischof Dr. Edouard Sinayobye, Bischof vom Bistum Cyangugu in Ruanda (Die Sendung ist von 2020, deshalb wird der Bischof noch als Regens angesprochen) https://www.media-maria.de/buecher/glaube-kirche/maria/6937/unsere-liebe-frau-von-kibeho-erscheint-30.09.2019

Par le Père Jean-Pierre Gatete, Vice-Recteur du Sanctuaire Notre Dame de Kibeho

2024-09-15 Homélie - Messe de Kibeho by Radio Maria France

In deze uitzending vliegen we de wereld rond. We brengen u nieuws vanuit Radio Maria in Malawi, Engeland, Indonesië, Peru, Engeland, Kibeho en nog andere! Ook lezen we een boodschap van Padre Livio.

Par le Père Jean-Pierre Gatete, Vice-Recteur du Sanctuaire Notre Dame des Douleurs de Kibeho au Rwanda

Querida Mãe, que nas aparições e mensagens de Kibeho, na África, nos alertaste sobre o mundo que se revoltou contra Deus e o perigo que corre sem o arrependimento, ajudai-nos a nos converter. Pelos méritos de tuas Sete Dores, pedi a Jesus que não nos deixe cair no abismo de consequências de nossas más ações. Interceda junto a Jesus para que Ele nos perdoe e santifique. Nossa Senhora de Kibeho, rogai por nós! Amém Texto copiado do site Santinhoz

(Dictated in English.) (NOTE: The footnotes are not dictated by God. They are added by Sister. Sometimes the footnote is to help clarify for the reader Sister's sense of the meaning of a certain word or idea, and at other times to better convey the sense of God's tone when He spoke.) Write, My daughter. - What shall I write?[1] That the Triumph of My Immaculate Heart is very near. My beloved children, All of you, who were entrusted to My Motherly care by My Jesus as He was dying on the Cross. Since that Hour I have carried each of you – across all time – in My Heart. Since that Hour I have loved you as My children. All of you. Each of you. As My Jesus' Heart was split open by the lance, thus opening the floodgates of Grace and Mercy for all the children of God, so My Heart was split open by the pain and the obedience of that Hour – the mystical sword that rent open My Heart, allowing the infinite Love of the Father, of My Son, of the Most Holy Spirit of God to widen It, making It capable of loving and receiving all His children in this new Refuge prepared for them – a Refuge that has been present and active since then. How much you are loved, children. How much. I wish to speak to you today – the anniversary of My first Apparition to My little ones at Fatima. Children, do not set My Words aside – not these nor any of the Words I have spoken to you throughout the centuries – Words that have come forth from My Immaculate Heart – from the Heart of your Mother – to help you, to guide you, to correct you, to warn you. If I speak, I do not do so of My own accord – I speak the Father's Will for you. I speak My Son's Love for you. I speak the Divine Light shed upon you by the Most Holy Spirit of God. If you turn a deaf ear to My Voice, you are turning a deaf ear to the Voice of the Most Holy Trinity Who never ceases to speak, to communicate with His children; Who – as the Everlasting Font of Life and Love – ceaselessly pours out His Mercy in myriads and myriads of ways, continually drawing your hearts back to His Own. By My example and by My prayers for you –My ever-present intercession on your behalf before the Throne of God – I teach you how to be truly attentive to the action of the Most Holy Trinity, that you might cooperate with this Divine Action in every moment of your lives. Blessed are they who, setting aside their own criteria, allow Me to form them according to the Divine Will and the work for which each soul was created. Come to your Mother, and allow Me to remove all the cobwebs of so many useless reasonings, of so many harmful and prideful thoughts, of so many lies that the enemy has woven around you. How can you see clearly, if your eyes are still covered by the scales of pride and arrogance? Come to Me, little children, that I might remove these stubborn scales with My tears, and cleanse your eyesight in order to see the true Face of My Jesus – the true Face of the Father. And that you might recognize the Signs We are giving you for these times – that you might see and recognize the unfolding of the Father's perfect Plan, and humbly receive the Grace you need in order to take your place in My Army for the accomplishment of this Plan. Children, this is the Hour that unites all other Hours – all other Ages. Each preceding Hour with its Grace, its purpose, its fulfillment; each preparing the coming of the next Hour. Each Hour acting in the present moment of the Father's Plan, which stretches from the beginning to the end of time, and carries all souls and all events to the fulfillment of this Plan for His Great Glory and the salvation of all of His children. My beloved children, contemplate with Me the beauty of this Plan of the Father's Heart. Contemplate with Me its vastness, its greatness, its Wisdom. Its Justice and Mercy. My children, open your eyes, but above all open your hearts through true docility, humility and trust, that the Light of the Most Holy Spirit of God might enlighten you, and, being able to see, you might be able to cooperate in His Work. This is what I ask of you during these days of the Cenacle – of this great New Cenacle – in which I join you to My Heart and to the prayers of all of your brothers and sisters, who throughout the centuries have asked for His Coming, who have prepared by their Faith and prayers and offerings your cooperation with His Grace, and who bring you encouragement in this darkest of Hours. I join you to My Heart, children, and I ask that – entering the safe refuge of My Heart, by means of your consecration, your entrustment to Me – you make an act of humility, Faith, and trust, that I might show you the Truth – that I may place it in the center of your being, like the Jewel of incalculable value, the Anchor you need in these times full of confusion and lies of the enemy, but full to overflowing with the Mystery of the Divine Action unfolding before you. My children, the Father's Plan is active everywhere and at all times, bringing about the eternal good for all of His children. Who can limit His Action? Who can say, “God would never do that”? Who – from such a limited, darkened, fallible, minuscule mind – can say to Him Who Is, to the One Who created all that is, to the One Who knows and sees every movement of every heart – who dare say to Him, “You cannot do this”? My children, My children – silence. Silence before the Mystery of God. The loving and trusting silence that is the filial act of adoration to the Father – recognizing that He is your God. And you are His creature, His child, willed into existence by Him. Silence before His Perfect Will – that is the perfect act of obedience – that does not question, does not doubt. “God knows why.” The thrice-holy Silence that humbles the soul, that beautifies it and makes it capable of receiving the Divine Light. The Silence, My children, that is born of true, living, simple FAITH. My beloved children, consider all the times that I have been sent to you to warn you and to bring you the Light of God to see the reality surrounding you as God sees it. HOW MANY TIMES, CHILDREN. AND HOW LITTLE I HAVE BEEN HEEDED – IGNORED, AND EVEN MOCKED BY THE ARROGANCE OF SO MANY OF MY BLINDED CHILDREN, THUS BLOCKING TORRENTS OF GRACE THAT WOULD HAVE DESCENDED FROM HEAVEN TO HELP MY CHILDREN. Actions have consequences, My children. And the setting aside, the despising of Our Gifts, has tremendous consequences not only for the souls who reject them, but for the whole world. Have you not yet understood that each time a soul rejects Our Grace, it affects all of Our children? And each time one soul responds to Our Grace, obeys the Will of the Father, We can pour forth rivers of Grace upon allof Our children? Do you see how important then, is your receiving or not receiving Our Gifts, Our Grace? My beloved Army, do you begin to understand now what it is that I need from you in order to lead you into battle? [gentle smile] Do you understand how it is you fight? How it is you help Me reconquer the hearts of your brothers and sisters? IT IS THROUGH FAITH – LIVING CHILD-LIKE FAITH – AND THROUGH YOUR ABANDONMENT TO THE FATHER'S PERFECT WILL. And do you begin to understand too then, what the greatest obstacle is to Our Plan? The horrendous LACK OF FAITH that produces contempt for Our Things, Our Words, Our Actions, and that is born out of the seed of pride planted by the enemy and fed by arrogance and fear. And how this seed of pride [has] fallen into so many of the souls of My Priests and Consecrated children, and found fertile soil, turning these souls into unrecognizable brambles of thorns and bitter fruit, useless – completely useless – for Our Plan.[2] Do you understand now, why then, the Fire that will come down from Heaven is needed to consume all these brambles and free My children from the corruption of pride? [Sigh] My children, this is why I ask you to come to Me, to enter the refuge of My Heart, to humble your heart and your mind before the Divine Mysteries – and to let Me cleanse your eyes and hearts, that you may be able to receive the fullness of the Light of the Most Holy Spirit of God, and you might see as He does, and, being able to see, you might cooperate with His Plan. My children, I have said to you that His Plan stretches from [the] beginning to [the] end of time, from one end of the earth to the other. Consider, then, that all Our Works cannot be contained or limited by any human consideration or reasoning. My children, how much it grieves Me when you attempt to limit Our Works. How many unnecessary obstacles you place with such reasonings in the paths of My little ones who believe with child-like Faith that Our God can do as He pleases, when He pleases, what He pleases – HE IS GOD. HOW MUCH PAIN has been caused to My little Messengers, the “voices” entrusted with Our Voice, to carry Our Words to you. HOW MUCH THEY HAVE BEEN MADE TO SUFFER. BY THE INCREDULOUS AND PROUD, ESPECIALLY AMONG THOSE FROM WHOM THEY SHOULD RECEIVE THE GREATEST HELP – PRIESTS AND CONSECRATED SOULS. I DO NOT FORGET THEIR PAIN. Nor the humiliations they were subjected to – their Glory now. My Melanie and Maximin; My Lucia, Jacinta and Francisco; My Bernadette; My Conchita, Mari Cruz, Mari Loli, and My other Jacinta [smile].[3] My beloved sons and daughters in Medjugorje, who still receive Me and bear witness to the Mission entrusted to them. And My beloved children – who gave their lives in bloody deaths out of love for Me and My Jesus in Kibeho.[4] And how many more, whose names are engraved in My Heart for their fidelity and their obedience and their endurance. HOW MUCH I LOVE THEM. And how it pains Me to see them reviled. Do you not see that it is MY VOICE that speaks to them, across the ages? And that this VOICE contains the VOICE of the Most Blessed Trinity, and that this VOICE is LOVE and MERCY? And that if you were attentive to It, you would perceive the DIVINE MYSTERY OF GOD at work in that moment, in that place, for you, for the accomplishment of the Father's Will at that moment. Every Divine Action has eternal effects – it can never be limited to one time – its effects are felt, they continue to produce fruits of everlasting life. But each of these Divine Actions is given at a precise time, for a precise reason, My children, and should be received by you as such – as helps sent to you at that moment, for that moment. My children, if the Father sends His Gift, His Action, will He not also send His Light that you might know that it is He Who is acting? If you are united to Him by Grace, by your Faith and humility, if you know His Voice, His Heart, shall you not recognize His Voice and His Action? And, recognizing the Father, shall you not also be given light to recognize the deceits of the Ancient Serpent, the eternal Ape, who in his pride mocks all the works of God? Come to Me, My little ones, if you wish to know the Father's Heart, if you wish to recognize His Voice, whether He speaks in silence, in action, or through His Messengers. In My Heart you find the Heart of My Jesus, Who is One with the Father. The Most Blessed Trinity has made My Heart your Refuge, a safe haven in which you can meet, and know, and love the Father, the Son, and Their Most Holy Spirit. My little ones, the Father's Plan is at work. Do not fear, do not despair. My Army is being gathered. I Am uniting you day by day, continuing to form you, to show you what it is that We need of you, how you cooperate in Our Reconquest. At each of My visits I have asked for what was needed as a response from My children and from My Church at that time– to allow the Father's Plan to be fulfilled at that time, to prevent unnecessary suffering. What I ask of you now – what is needed of you now – is your FAITH, TRUST, ABANDONMENT and HUMILITY – the true Silence of the attentive heart, ready to receive the order of his Captain in order to fight in the Great Reconquest. HOW CAN YOU ACT AND FIGHT IF YOU DO NOT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE BEING ASKED TO DO – AND HOW CAN YOU KNOW WHAT IS BEING ASKED, WHAT THE ORDER IS, IF YOU ARE NOT ATTENTIVE TO YOUR CAPTAIN'S VOICE? AND HOW CAN YOU HEAR YOUR CAPTAIN'S VOICE IF YOU DO NOT SILENCE YOUR THOUGHTS – YOUR OWN VOICE – YOUR CRITERIA, YOUR WILL? AND HOW CAN YOU SILENCE YOUR MIND, WILL, AND HEART IF YOU DO NOT BELIEVE? My children, WHAT I ASK OF YOU IS YOUR FAITH. YOUR HUMILITY. YOUR OBEDIENCE. YOUR TRUST. Come, children, let us bow down together before the Father of Mercies, before HE WHO IS, and, with Me, offer Him your love, your adoration; and together with Me say, “Father, may Your Will be accomplished in me and in all of Your creatures. Here I am, Lord, to do Your Will, to love You and serve You for all eternity.” My little children, I bless you with My Motherly Blessing. I gather you to My Heart in these days of the great Cenacle – the time when I gather all of My children, all of the Church into My Heart, into this holy Refuge prepared for you – as the Hour fast approaches when the Divine Light will pour down, will thunder down upon all that is to reveal once again the TRUTH. Do not be afraid, remain in Me. Remain in My Son, under the shelter of His Blood, behind the Shield of His Cross. My beloved ones…[smile]…I love you. I bless you, and I bless your families. Entrust them to Me and do not be afraid.   Amen. He is coming. To Him be given all Glory and Adoration and Thanksgiving and Praise for all ages. To the ONE WHO IS, WHO WAS, AND WHO IS TO COME, TO THE FATHER ALMIGHTY, TO THE SON ALL-HOLY, TO THE SPIRIT OF GOD MOST HOLY – HE WHO GIVES BREATH TO ALL THAT IS – TO HIM MAY ALL HEARTS ADORE, AND LOVE, AND OBEY. AMEN. Your Heavenly Mother, Who leads you by the hand, Mary Most Holy, Queen of all the Angels, Queen of the Apostles and Mother of the Church, Who loves you and protects you. ---------- [1] On some occasions – such as in this Message – when I am given the order, “Write, My daughter,” my soul immediately perceives the serious and solemn tone with which it is given and thus it responds without thinking, “What shall I write?” – words that seem to me to express the attitude of the soul of being particularly attentive to what is going to be said, as if this act of special attention and obedience were needed from me before the dictation can begin. And I perceive that what They say right after – usually a short phrase – is of great solemnity and importance. They have a different weight than Their other words. [2] I understood that, though it is especially harmful when the souls of Priests and religious fall into pride, that this spirit of pride has spread into many, many souls, destroying simple Faith in them, allowing the spirit of godlessness to spread widely and deeply. “And will not God vindicate His elect, who cry to Him day and night? Will He delay long over them? I tell you, He will vindicate them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of man comes, will He find faith on earth?” (Luke 18:7-8) [3] Our Lady is confirming Her Apparitions – and those who received them – at LaSalette (1846), Fatima (1917), Lourdes (1858), Garabandal (1961-1965), Medjugorje (1981-present), Kibeho (1981-1989). I had a sense that even though She mentions these specifically, She is also including all Her other “minor” Apparitions throughout the world in recent times – and there are many. [4] As I was transcribing these paragraphs I thought of how varied the witness required of all these “messengers” is – some were asked to offer their lives while very young, enduring much physical pain and illness; others were asked to enter religious life; others have been asked to wait, and wait, and wait for the fulfillment of the events announced to them, while living ‘normal' lives in the world; others must endure the complete and constant invasion of their privacy; others are asked to offer their lives in bloody martyrdom; others to offer the white martyrdom of life-long humiliations, misunderstandings, loneliness. All have had to endure the tremendous trials of Faith. It seems to me that there is a great lesson in this variety of witness – even though the experience itself of receiving an Apparition is very similar, what is then required of each person can be very different.

Today Deacon Harold welcomes Immaculee Ilibagiza to talk about Forgiveness and Our Lady of Kibeho. Deacon also dives into Psalm 73.

Rwandan genocide survivor Immaculee Ilibagiza talks about her books and her EWTN series that tells the stories of people who have made the courageous decision to forgive others.

Par le Père Jean-Pierre Gatete, Vice-Recteur du Sanctuaire Notre Dame des Douleurs de Kibeho

Par le Père Jean-Pierre Gatete, vice-recteur du Sanctuaire de Kibeho

Par le Père Jean-Pierre Gatete, Vice-Recteur du Sanctuaire Notre Dame de Kibeho

2023-11-28 Chapelet mondial - Kibeho (Rwanda) by Radio Maria France

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* Mets-toi en présence de Dieu, pour essayer de Lui parler. * Tu disposes de 10 minutes, pas plus : va jusqu'au bout, même si tu te distrais. * Persévère. Prends ton temps et laisse l'Esprit Saint agir 'à petit feu'. Un passage de l'Évangile, une idée, une anecdote, un prêtre qui s'adresse à toi et au Seigneur, et t'invite à entrer dans l'intimité de Dieu. Choisis le meilleur moment, imagine que tu es avec Lui, et appuie sur play pour commencer. Toutes les infos sur notre site : www.10minutesavecjesus.org Contact : 10minavecjesus@gmail.com LGB

Par le Père Jean-Pierre Gatete, Vice-Recteur du Sanctuaire Notre Dame de Kibeho au Rwanda

Hour 1 of The Drew Mariani Show on 9-15-23 Michael Naughton catches Drew up to speed about the United Auto Workers Strike  Immaculee Ilibagiza tells us about Our Lady of Sorrows and the unique rosary of her 7 sorrows that she urged everyone to pray during her apparitions in Kibeho, Rwanda

Par le Père Jean Pierre Gatete, Vice-Recteur du Sanctuaire Notre Dame des Douleurs de Kibeho

5/31/23 - Most are familiar with Marian apparitions from France and other areas of Europe, such as Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of Lourdes, and others. But did you know there is only ONE apparition from Africa that has been approved by the Vatican? Join us today to learn more as we unpack the one-of-a-kind apparition known as Our Lady of Kibeho.

Doug Barry and Adam wrap up their week of Marian Apparitions discussing Our Lady of Kibeho. Clyde Nosser stops by to share how the Blessed Mother guides us on the road of life. To learn more about Covenant Network Catholic Radio, visit our website at www.OurCatholicRadio.org.  

Ref.: Pfarrer Peter Meyer und Bürgermeister Konrad Kienle und Mira Amend und Bodo Klose

Avec Damian Sanchez

Day 40. Truth of the Spirit with Patti Brunner presents Daily Meditations for Lent.  We include personal revelation for your discernment to grow in closeness to the Lord through truth, repentance, and the word of God moving into fullness within your heart during this liturgical season of Lent.  https://www.PatriarchMinistries.com/310 Holy Week Playlist Holy Week Playlist - YouTube   https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgixdsnYKWlTJ054owcCuGUzkXhRp1kzh  Videos in Holy Week Playlist: Episode 152 Visions of Anne Catherine Emmerich-Last Supper Eucharist, https://www.PatriarchMinistries.com/152 Episode 213 Judas the Betrayer-Anne Catherine Emmerich, https://www.PatriarchMinistries.com/213 Episode 057 Basics of Paschal Mystery, https://www.PatriarchMinistries.com/57 Episode 147 Way of the Cross—Door to the Divine Mercy of God, https://www.PatriarchMinistries.com/147 Episode 231 Rosary of 7 Sorrows Given by Our Lady of Kibeho, https://www.PatriarchMinistries.com/231 TOS-LSC101 Truth and Hope in the Way of the Cross     https://www.patriarchministries.com/LSC101 Episode 060 Salvation – Basics of Faith VIII https://www.patriarchministries.com/60 40 Episodes of Daily Lent Meditations Playlists: Audio Playlist:  https://www.PatriarchMinistries.com/lent Daily Lent Meditations with Patti Brunner Video Playlist:  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgixdsnYKWlQitpPkrvfhYNdxG8wkh4l8  

As one of the most shocking of all Marian apparitions, what exactly happened in Kibeho, Rwanda, in 1994? What did heaven need to warn us about? What did this prophecy say and why is this fully approved Marian apparition so important today? Support our Ministries here.Fair Use Policy  Are you enjoying this podcast? I invite you to listen to more shows brought to you by the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception. Join us daily for enriching, spiritual content which will help you on your journey with Jesus Christ. Simply visit DivineMercyPlus.org for a complete list of our shows. That's DivineMercyPlus.org. Please “follow” or “subscribe” to this podcast to receive the latest episodes and updates. If you have been blessed by this podcast, please consider leaving a review. Reviews greatly improve our podcast ranking, and will help spread this podcast to other people throughout the world. Thank you and God bless you! 

To learn more about and grow in your devotion to Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows, check out this article or these products from OSV Catholic Bookstore!Caring for a Loved One with Mary: A Seven Sorrows Prayer CompanionSeven Sorrows Rosary PackageSeven Sorrows ChapletOSV Prays is an OSV Podcasts original. Discover more ways to live, learn, and love your Catholic faith at osvpodcasts.com. Sharing stories, starting conversations.

Seven Sorrows DevotionHere is the PDF of the words if you'd like to follow along.Here is the Marian Apparition Series video on Our Lady of Kibeho, Mother of the Word, as referenced in today's reflection.Here is the traditional, longer version of the devotion in pray-along video form.MusicMother Dearest, Mother Fairest - Robin & Robert KochisLose You - Jurrivh

2023-03-02 Homélie - Kibeho (Rwanda) by Radio Maria France

2022-11-28 Chapelet - Sanctuaire ND de Kibeho by Radio Maria France

2022-11-28 Veillée - Eglise St Louis d'Antin en l'honneur de ND de Kibeho by Radio Maria France

TGIAF everyone on the first day in December and we join the Two Tony's once again this week.  Picking up where they left off on Tuesday…discussing Our Lady of Kibeho and a number of things that were brought up.  Father Anthony also shares more readings regarding many of the things we face and do in life, feeling chosen for things.  https://ststanschurch.org/ 

Hour 2 of The Drew Mariani Show on 11-28-22 Drew tells us about Kibeho on this anniversary of the apparitions Salih Hudayar brings to light the Chinese people who are finally rebelling against the CCP regime who have been brutal in their lockdown measures

After Producer Nick starts off the show…Father Anthony arrives and discusses all the stress and distress he has.  Not just him, but also the stress and distress we all face in the world, not necessarily the holiday stress or only the holiday stress, but the emotional, spiritual, and physical stress we deal with.  This relates to the Two Tony's to discuss that along the lines of being in the Advent Season now and discussing Our Lady of Kibeho.  https://ststanschurch.org

Tom Shrewsbury tells the story of Our Lady of Kibeho

Have a family rosary is important explains host Johnnette Williams. It draws the family together. It is never too late. Start with one decade at a time. Pray for people the children want to pray for. Caller Nancy says she stared praying the seven sorrows rosary and has a devotion to Our Lady of Kibeho. Penny calls in and says she is dealing with loneliness. Johnnette suggests a Women Of Grace study.

Have a family rosary is important explains host Johnnette Williams. It draws the family together. It is never too late. Start with one decade at a time. Pray for people the children want to pray for. Caller Nancy says she stared praying the seven sorrows rosary and has a devotion to Our Lady of Kibeho. Penny calls in and says she is dealing with loneliness. Johnnette suggests a Women Of Grace study.

Truth of the Spirit with Patti Brunner of Patriarch Ministries present the Rosary of the 7 Sorrows given during apparitions by the Blessed Mother Mary in Africa, known as Our Lady of Kibeho. The visionary Marie Claire was killed during the Rwandan genocide that was predicted to the visionaries just a few years later. https://www.PatriarchMinistries.com/231    

2022-09-12 Interview de Gino Testa sur l'évènement Notre Dame des Sept Douleurs de Kibeho by Radio Maria France

The Scriptural Rosary of the Seven Sorrows of Our Blessed Lady, led by Fr Peter Rookey OSM, recorded in 1992. The prayer is preceded by an Introduction to the Rosary of the Seven Sorrows by Fr Peter.  This audio is provided solely to honor the memory of Fr Peter Rookey and to provide resources by which we can pray daily with blessed Fr Peter. It does not imply any opinion or comment concerning the apparitions of Kibeho or any political matters. 

 The Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary with Fr Peter Rookey OSM, recorded at a home prayer meeting in Chicago in 1989.  This audio is provided solely to honor the memory of Fr Peter Rookey and to provide resources by which we can pray daily with blessed Fr Peter. It does not imply any opinion or comment concerning the apparitions of Kibeho or any political matters.

Cyclist Jack Gebert provides an update on his 600 mile trek from Green Bay, Wisconsin, to St. Louis with Biking for Babies. Doug Barry and Adam wrap up their week of reflections on Marian Apparitions by discussing Our Lady of Kibeho. Gabe Jones and Cory Grizzle join Adam for the Roadmap Roundup.

Jen Brown from Spirit Catholic Radio joins Adam to talk about the power of witness in our faith lives. Doug Barry and Adam continue their weeklong series discussing Marian Apparitions of the past century with a focus on Our Lady of Kibeho.  Learn more about Covenant Network Catholic Radio at www.OurCatholicRadio.org .

Mysterious feedback! Jimmy Akin and Dom Bettinelli answer your mysterious feedback on recent episodes, including Bill Ray, Our Lady of Kibeho, Steven Greer, Poltergeists, Dr. Edwin May, Inflation, and Ghost Bride. The post Mysterious Feedback Special, July 2022 appeared first on StarQuest Media.

Mysterious feedback! Jimmy Akin and Dom Bettinelli answer your mysterious feedback on recent episodes, including Bill Ray, Our Lady of Kibeho, Steven Greer, Poltergeists, Dr. Edwin May, Inflation, and Ghost Bride.

Mariadon 2022-05-13 Kibeho dans ma vie: témoignage de pèlerins by Radio Maria France

Intro: It's a bad idea not to pay your student loans, The Odd Couple, Severance, chicken nugget bowls,  Let Me Run This By You: Google is bullying Gina. What's your email archive strategy? We are all mostly old because the window of youth is shockingly short. Some of your dreams are NOT out of reach.Interview: We talk to T.J. Harris about coming to acting later in life, having a background in business, having a close-knit cohort, Title IX investigations, being the victim of racial profiling while at school, the paradox of slightly shy kids being told they were shy so often that they become even more withdrawn, Our Lady of Kibeho, Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom, Sean Parris, Chris Anthony.FULL TRANSCRIPT (unedited):3 (10s):And I'm Gina Pulice.4 (11s):We went to theater school together. We survived it, but we didn't quite understand it.3 (15s):20 years later, we're digging deep talking to our guests about their experiences and trying to make sense of it all.4 (21s):We survived theater school and you will too. Are we famous yet?1 (34s):Anyway, so I had to like get him out of the house and like men are slow and I just, it's just, it's a really no win situation. So anyway. Hello. Hello Busy. I've been busy. We've all been busy.2 (51s):We have been doing the damn thing. Haven't we?1 (55s):Yeah.2 (56s):Yeah. I have spent the last, what feels like a week. Yeah. I think it's been a week simply reviewing every single dollar 20, 21, like literally and putting it in a spreadsheet, literally like can donuts, can you1 (1m 18s):Keep it because you can write off a lot2 (1m 20s):Of new machine. Yeah. That's yeah. That's, that's the point of it is to find everything that, that can be written off, but it's, you know, and I'm hunched and my back and my eyes strain, and it's just like, oh my God, Calgon, take me away.1 (1m 38s):Yeah. I mean, I think that taxes are one of those things where if you do them right, and legally it's a lot of work, right? It's like,2 (1m 47s):You want to skim and1 (1m 48s):Be shady, which I don't recommend, because guess what? The IRS is only job is to get your money. Like, that's their only job. They don't have any other purpose on the planet. So like, if you think that's not their job, you're wrong. But anyway, so if you do it right, like you are, it's a lot of freaking work and it also is painstaking.2 (2m 12s):And I, and, and it's painstaking. And I think, you know, to, to, to find a silver lining in it, like, I'm so glad I don't have a full-time job because this is the kind of thing that literally, I don't know how people, when it's, when everybody works, how they do it it's1 (2m 35s):Well, you can't. I mean, I think it's, that's why people end up in trouble. Like, that's why people end up trying to skin his scam or not doing them and being like, you know what, I'm going to pass on all this. I'm just going to hope for them. And like, that's what I did with my student loans, because I didn't want to, and that's not even as hard as taxes, but I just like, couldn't cope with the ins and outs of doing the work to defer or like make deals, or like get my payments lower. And thus, I had a sheriff show up at my apartment. Like that is where you're headed. You don't know that story. Oh, all right. So I thought, oh, it'd be really cool to not pay my student loans.1 (3m 15s):I mean, I didn't really have the money, but I also didn't realize that my student loans were private student loans. Oh boy. So when they're private, you're in big trouble, because guess what? It's a bank that wants their money. It's not the government who has a million other things to do. Right. So the bank is like, no, we want our money. And I did that. Know that the bank hires the Sheriff's department to serve papers when you are being sued for your private loans. So one day I am N in Rogers park at my thinking, you know, nothing of it. Like I, I owed 50 grand and I to like four different banks. Right. It's always, and they sell them to other people and it's a big scam.1 (3m 56s):Right. Okay. Fine. But I'm like going about my business thinking, but feeling bad, but like, feeling like, ah, fuck it. Like, who cares? Well, they care. Wait,2 (4m 7s):How long were you not paying them1 (4m 9s):For a couple of years? Maybe I just said, forget it in 15, 20, 15. I said, no more. And then in 27, 20 17, I'm literally, I kept getting calls. They started calling miles and I was just the guy just pay no attention. Miles, like pay no attention. And of course he's like so trusting. He was like, okay, I'll pay no attention. I'll compartmentalize. And okay. So one day there's a, our buzzer goes off and I'm like, hello. Cause no one ever. He's like, this is the Sheriff's department. Are you Jennifer Bosworth? And I was like, and then I realized, I really quickly, your mind goes, oh, what have I done wrong?1 (4m 50s):Right. And it focuses it on the thing. Cause you know what you've done right. Or what I've done wrong. And I'm like, oh, my here is the PA the Piper or the pied Piper or whoever is coming to collect chickens, home to roost all the things. And I was like, and I just said, I have a lawyer go away. And he goes, no, we just, we just want to give you these papers. Like we have to give you these papers. I'm like, no, I have a lawyer go away. Which is the wrong thing to do.2 (5m 19s):What also, what was your logic there? I have a lawyer. Okay.1 (5m 23s):There was no logic. I would say it was the opposite of logic is what's going on. So I see that they go away because, and so they're paid by the bank. So they just hire the Sheriff's department to serve people. I did not know that it's like, they, they you're there for hire basically the Sheriff's department. So they go and they serve people and they could not serve me. But then what it did was it was really actually a great kick in the pants because I was like, oh, I have a court date now. So no. So what I did was I said, okay, let me find it. So then I was like, I need a lawyer. So, and then on my 43rd birthday or 42nd, 42nd birthday.1 (6m 10s):Yeah. 42nd birthday. I went to the lawyer. I found this lawyer fucking brilliant. I can't remember her name right now. She was like legally blonde. She had these long pink nails and her only job was to get people off student loans and, and either file bankruptcy or figure out a way to talk. The loan people doubt. She was a bad-ass and I went there and I was like crying. And I was like, look. And she was like, oh, $50,000. That's nothing. And I was like, oh, she's like, I got people that I was, you know, 600,000 in medical school loans,2 (6m 43s):Medical school, that's1 (6m 45s):All. But also she goes, yeah, the private loans they get ya, you know? So, so she, she, okay. So she said, I said, well, what do I do? I can't remember her name. She was so awesome. And I, and she's like, well, do you have the money? I'm like, well, look, I have this inheritance. She's like, oh no, no, no, no, no, no. Then we can't declare bankruptcy because they'll go after your inheritance. I was like, oh, hell to the, no. So she's like, all right, well, we'll try to get him down. So she reduced $50,000 to $25,000 for a fee of $3,000 and went to court and was like, you know, so she talked them down. She's like, you're getting nothing. If you don't take this 25,000, she's like, can you get me 25,000?1 (7m 27s):I'm like, sure. So I, then it happened to be, we were selling the house around that time. Anyway, I got the money and then my life has, but my credit was literally if a here's what people don't understand. It's like, it may be stupid, but the credit matters. But if you want to live somewhere,2 (7m 46s):Right? Like if you want to be on the grid,1 (7m 49s):If you want to like have a house that is, if you ever want to apply for apartment, if you ever want to it matters. I know it shouldn't. I always tell my students like, yeah, all this shit shouldn't matter, but it does everyone. It does. I hate the fact that it does, but let's be honest about the truth here. Let's just get real. So my, my credit now, what my credit was so low, I can't remember what it was. And I was like, oh, that's not so bad. And my friend was like, that's the worst credit you're going to have? And I was like, oh, okay. I was like, I didn't understand the scale. Right? Like I was like, oh, five 40 isn't bad. Or five, some days she was like, that's like the worst. So now my credit is seven 80.1 (8m 30s):Oh no, no. I got it. All of it is seven 50 because I paid it off. And like, I don't, we don't have any debt. Thank God credit card wise. Oh, because vials is, if, if it were up to me, I probably have debt up to my eyeballs, unfortunately. But my partner is like, oh no, no, no. He's really good with that. Thank God. Oh boy. Cause I have some problems because my parents never taught me shit. You know? So no, all this to say, how did this come up?2 (8m 58s):Because we were talking about,1 (8m 60s):Sorry.2 (9m 1s):Okay. But so many things about your story. First of all, it was $50,000. Just the amount you owed from the time that you stopped paying, or are you saying it has a total of $50,000?1 (9m 15s):No, I had more than that. So I had had 80 and I had paid 30 of it off because I went to school like in oh eight. I graduated. So it's not like a long time. So I had 50, 80,000 total. I had paid 30 somehow some way and all those years around there. And then I had 50 left. Yeah. And I was used to pay the 50, but then I2 (9m 38s):Just, just asking, but like, could anybody go to a lawyer and say, reduce my,1 (9m 45s):Yeah. That's their whole, because here's what the, yes, this is what they don't tell you is that2 (9m 50s):I feel like such an asshole. Right?1 (9m 54s):Doris is literally overdosing on melatonin. Hold on. Okay.2 (9m 58s):Oh my God. I can't believe I could have. I just pay. All of my students will never1 (10m 6s):Happen again. Come2 (10m 7s):Here, Come here. I just can't believe I've paid every penny of my student loans. What is wrong with me? I'm just the worst partner ever. Sorry. No, you're not. You're not the worst person. She meets me. And I eat1 (10m 31s):That2 (10m 32s):Thing away from her and I gave her all kinds of,1 (10m 35s):Okay. So yeah. You don't feel like an asshole because here's the thing. They never tell you this, that you can everything's negotiable in this country. Okay. Every single thing is negotiable. Everything's a business deal. Everything can be reduced. Why? Because there's no set rate for anything that's capitalism. So you, you, you can charge whatever you want. And then it's negotiable. So what she told me was these companies, these banks, they're banks, they're not companies. I mean, they're banks. These banks know that they will get nothing. If someone declares bankruptcy. Okay. So they don't know that I had this inheritance, this, you know, but they, they know that most people say F you I'm part of capitalism is bankruptcy.1 (11m 22s):I'm declaring bankruptcy. You get $0. So they want anything. They'll take pennies on the goddamn dollar. So she's like, oh no. And it's a fine line. And that's why you need a lawyer to go to court and say, my client has nothing. So if you want anything, she'd lucked into 25 grand. She can, she can scrape by twenty-five grand. You want that? Or you want Jack shit. And then they'll say, give me the 25 grand.2 (11m 45s):Right? Right. Well, I, I, it doesn't matter. Now I had done this, you know, 10 years ago. I mean, because the thing is, of course, like you take, you borrow $50,000 and you pay 300, basically.1 (11m 58s):It's ridiculous. Especially with private loans. Ridiculous.2 (12m 3s):That's what, and that's what I had. I had a lot of problems, but the other thing that's so striking about your stories, the moment when you start, when you said you had this moment in 2015, where you said, fuck it. I just, that gave me such a thrill. Like if you would, just because the reason I couldn't do that is I would think about it every second of the day.1 (12m 25s):I would have. Yeah. Because my mom was my co-signer, but that lady was dead. So I was like, what are they going to do? Cause she was really, I was more afraid of my mother than the federal and then the, then the bank and the government. So the private loans and the government. So I, if she was alive, you bet your ass. I would have been paying those motherfuckers off2 (12m 45s):Of my loans for social work school had to have a co-signer of my father-in-law. And for some reason that I never did get to the bottom of Wells Fargo. If I was one day late for a payment, they wouldn't even call me or contact me in any way. They just immediately, it was all on him. Yes. And he would of course call me the second that they called him. And it was so embarrassing every time I'd be like, I mean, it happened like, I want to say it happened five or six1 (13m 19s):Times. That is so easy to do.2 (13m 22s):It's silly. But1 (13m 24s):It's2 (13m 24s):Also like, this is the mafia. Like you're you're one day late in your payment and you don't say, Hey, could you pay me? You just go, do you just threaten somebody to break?1 (13m 33s):Yeah, it's a psychological tactic. It's like some real Scientology bullshit.2 (13m 38s):It was horrible. Horrible, horrible. So if you have a few, can't pay your student loans. If you're listening to this and you cannot pay your student loans, call a lawyer,1 (13m 52s):Let me run this by you.2 (13m 58s):And then I'm also doing another, another way in which I'm an obsessive rural follower is that Google sent me a message saying, I have exceeded my storage limit by 380%. And if that, if I listen, anybody could, anybody can bully me. I am so easily bullied. It said, if you don't, if you don't pay more for storage or get rid of some of what you have, you will no longer be able to send or receive emails. So I spent five hours yesterday going through1 (14m 34s):A bad idea in some it's2 (14m 36s):Not about idea. Well, I've got it down. Sorry. I was, I was out, I was using 385%. I'm down to 340% after deleting probably 10,000 emails1 (14m 49s):With like, is it true? What they're saying?2 (14m 52s):I don't know. All I know is that when I log onto my email and I see a big red line across the top,1 (14m 60s):I can't,2 (15m 1s):I can't take it. I can't take the red line, but upside, it has been a walk down memory lane, you know, because things, I mean, people I'm having email exchanges with, it seems sort of intimate. And I'm like, I have no idea who that person is. Or like reading email. I looked for the oldest email I have from you, which on this, on this, my Gmail is from 2008. And just, you know, whatever, like you were talking about your job. And I was talking about my job and I found the, the engagement announcement. Yeah.1 (15m 40s):That's2 (15m 40s):Kind of fun too. And, and also I realized I had thousands of emails that I just simply don't need. Like I keep every email. Do you keep all of your emails?1 (15m 51s):No. So I I'm so weird. I never have more than zero unread in my inbox.2 (15m 59s):Well, wait, did I just mean you archives of metal?1 (16m 3s):No, I just delete them. Not all the good one. No, no, no, no. I, I don't, I I'm terrible that I don't know how to do shit, so I don't put them in folders or anything like that or archive.2 (16m 18s):And then you have1 (16m 19s):Zero2 (16m 20s):Emails.1 (16m 21s):Yeah. It's because I have no life maybe. And I just,2 (16m 25s):The chairman for you have a full life and now you don't have any of your emails back from you. Don't1 (16m 30s):You know, I have that.2 (16m 32s):Well, how do you have them?1 (16m 34s):I erased the ones as they come in that are know that I don't know longer that have attachments and no longer need.2 (16m 41s):Okay.1 (16m 42s):So I manage my box. So here's the thing I will run out of storage. It's just that I don't think I get a lot of emails. I don't, I actually don't like, I'm always saying, I want more emails. I'm like the only person that wants them. I'm so like, I love paperwork and I love emails. And so I don't know. I'm always like no one ever emails me. It's so weird. But anyway, the pain is,2 (17m 5s):It's not possible that no one ever emails. You Did. The thing that I did, which is I accidentally deleted all my emails from1 (17m 15s):No, I remember that. That was hilarious. And now,2 (17m 19s):For example,1 (17m 20s):So right now I have zero emails, unread, unread,2 (17m 26s):Unread, you keep everything in your inbox.1 (17m 29s):Yeah. You know me, my desktop. How2 (17m 33s):Many emails are in your inbox? Just1 (17m 38s):30,000. I mean read 30,035.2 (17m 44s):Okay. Well what do you do when you have to find?1 (17m 50s):Well, that's why I can't never find my, Why you don't say why it happened. You have ISO every time you send me, it's bad. But miles miles was like, cause now miles is really into email because of his job for the last six months, his new job. And he's like, but you have no full zero four.2 (18m 8s):No, but zero folders. My shoulder, my shoulders are getting so tough.1 (18m 16s):So, Okay. So anyway, it beans, like I'm not saying I have a good system. Like I don't have a good system. I have no system. But what it is is I'm just proud. I don't have like, I'm really judgy about people that have a lot of unread emails. So like literally if I walk by and coworking and I see someone's inbox has like 12,000 unread, I go, oh God, I go, nothing, nothing, nothing little do they know? I have not one fucking folders. So I can't pay,2 (18m 47s):I need to start in a production of the odd couple because I am.1 (18m 54s):I know I look at your, I don't even know how you make. I look at our joint email. I don't know what these folders mean. I don't know what there's like sub folders to me. I'm like,2 (19m 6s):Now that you're, now that we're discussing this, I'm realizing another fake fakery folders actually don't have any meaning because actually, well, because actually, if you wanted to find an email,1 (19m 22s):This is like from2 (19m 23s):Right. If you want to find an email from target, you can just Google. I mean, you can just search.1 (19m 29s):Yes. But the problem is if you have 4,000, let me run this by you emails. So that is my, so I need you to set it up. I thought I had set it up for, for my, let me run this links. No. So what I did was set up a ma a new G Gmail account2 (19m 47s):And it's not1 (19m 48s):Good. It's not fair. So the bottom line is, I don't think my system is great, but what I think is I like I Le well, I'm weird in that. I like having no unread emails, but at the same time, I don't feel like people are emailing me enough.2 (20m 3s):We did a freaky Friday. You and me and you were thrust into my life. And I was thrusted. I think that I would immediately feel relieved because I feel like you don't necessarily carry around you. I mean, you have a lot of stuff that you have to carry around, but you don't necessarily carry around this need to do everything. Perfect.1 (20m 27s):Oh, no. And I think that comes, I swear to God. A lot of it is with kids, because if you fuck up with yourself, okay, so you're a fuck up. But if you are a parent of three children and you don't, you fuck up, you end up like a lot of people we know, which is, and the kids ended up like, like we, us and people, we know we don't like, so that is, I feel like if I was dropped in. So, so I feel like if I was dropped into your life, I would like it. Cause you have like all this space Around and everything.2 (21m 0s):And my kids would love it because you're fun. And that's, that's like, that's like the dynamic, that's the thing in our house. It's like, mom's no fun. Mom is doing, she's got the rules. She's1 (21m 12s):No, no, I'd be like, all right, let's do, let's eat fried food. This would be my thing. I'd be like, Eat fried food. And I can't eat that anymore. But if I dropped into your life, I could write, I could eat that. And I would say, okay, this is what I used to eat before my hurt. Like what completely I would have. I was thinking about the other day, something called a chicken nugget bowls. Okay. Which was, I would a2 (21m 37s):Bowl of chicken nuggets1 (21m 39s):Mixed with, okay. So I'd go to trader Joe's and get the chicken nuggets and then bake those. And then their, their potatoes, fries, fries, and th and literally dump a bunch of that in a bowl, put some ketchup and mix it all up and just have like a chicken nugget fry. But that's not good for you, by the way.2 (22m 2s):Why was it appealing to put it in a bowl? Instead of1 (22m 5s):I liked the combo of the two together and like the ketchup was the glue that held it all together. And I loved that, but the problem was I gained a lot of weight and then my heart went down. You can't really2 (22m 18s):Mean the thing1 (22m 20s):About adulthood, the shit you really like can not be maintained if you want to live.2 (22m 25s):I mean, it's such a bummer. I recently realized that youth really only lasts for 25 years. So, so, so everybody is mostly old, right? Like everybody's friends, the majority of their life that didn't occur to me for some reason, I think because we're so youth obsessed in this culture, I had this way of fit, not logically, but like I had this way of thinking about it. Like it's this long epoch of life, but really1 (22m 59s):You're old for a very long time. And then you die.2 (23m 2s):And then you're also very young for a period of time. So the, the period of time where you're autonomous and1 (23m 14s):We also missed it.2 (23m 16s):And then we were just walking around, feeling horrible about ourselves.1 (23m 19s):That is such a waste. Right? The other thing I was going to tell you, I have a really good story to tell you about someone we know that I can share, because it's a good story. This is a story about why it's good. That life can be good. Okay. I'm teaching at DePaul, our Alma mater, as you know, if you listen to the show, okay. I teach fourth year BFA actors on zoom, which I wasn't supposed to, but I got special and that's a whole nother Oprah and itself. But so I have students and one of my things is we write pitch letters. I help them. Cause that's my jam. I love doing that. Even if it's a pitch letter for them, for a tour to a rep, to a producer, whatever we write these like bio pitch letters.1 (24m 3s):Okay, fine. So I had this student, I still have the student and he's a wonderful youngster. And he's like talking his dream. This is so crazy. His dream is to be in the Mar somehow in the Marvel universe. Okay. Like he wants his dream is to be in a movie, a Marvel movie. But of course he wants a foot in the door, anything. And he goes, and I said, okay, well, like why we're developing his pitch letter with the class. Everyone takes turns, blah, blah, blah. And he's like, I would really like the career of this guy that I, that I've heard about named Sean Gunn. I'm like, wait,2 (24m 37s):Oh my God.1 (24m 39s):He said, he said, I know he went to the theater school. And like, I know, and I'm thinking to myself, cause you know, I obviously we've interviewed Sean gone listened to his interview and obviously, and we've done it twice, right? No, didn't we do two, two parts. I wasn't that the second one. But yeah. And obviously we know him and obviously he's not like my best friend, but I, and I was like thinking to myself and he's like, I just would really love to pitch him. And I was like, oh my God. So we created a dope letter to Sean Gunn. And I wrote to Sean and said, Hey, my students are doing this thing. He would love to jump on a zoom and they're going to have a zoom. So he's going to meet his hero.2 (25m 20s):That's I1 (25m 21s):Know I couldn't have been happier. I was like, I actually am doing something that makes a difference. So I'm facilitating the zoom between Alex and Sean and Sean was gracious enough to do it. And, and it turns out that he's filming. I think in Atlanta, you know, probably some marble thing and, and he gets off this week. And so it's, he has some time and Alex is like lipping out. Out's 21, right. This kid, he's like a great kid. He did stop motion classes. Like he, like, he knows how to do that as an actor, like the guy is in his letter, I really helped him with his letter. And, and Sean said, this, your student's letter is so sweet. Like I love it. So anyway, the point is, I was like, oh my gosh, this is, this is also to say that another reason the podcast is good.1 (26m 8s):Right. Because you just don't know how you're going to like pass it along. And FYI in two months, my students are going to be our colleagues. Right. Cause they're graduating. So you don't know, like, I don't know what they'll need for me or what I need from them.2 (26m 22s):I always say, you're the person who identified from the very beginning that this podcast was going to be healing to people. And not only are you doing it in this way, but you're also doing it in a way that you're through your work as a teacher correcting the thing that almost everybody who comes on says, I, yeah, I got all this education. But then when I graduated and now I do anything, like you're giving them at least,1 (26m 47s):And I do one-on-ones with them. And because I'm like, look, yes, exactly what happens to us and happened to everyone that we've talked to almost missed, except for like three people. And we've talked to a lot of people happened to is happening again, because I think there's obviously a bigger question of the reckoning of how do we change at a theater stage, acting conservatory to become more friendly towards launching these students in a way where they actually can get work and live and not worry and not worry as much that everything is for not. And what am I doing?1 (27m 26s):And I didn't get picked or chosen and how to write a pitch letter. Like FYI, all the people that I'm helping write pitch letters, they're all getting their meetings with people. It just, anyway, you were saying like, you can access.2 (27m 41s):Yeah. People it's, I'm not suggesting that anybody you want to talk to, you can just hit them up and talk to them. But I am just sort of speaking to this barrier that I have always had myself this mental barrier of like, well, I could never talk to so-and-so it's this thing about like, I could never follow my dream. You know, I recently realized that I actually was afraid to say inside of my own head, what a dream, what my dream was like. Right. Like I, I just made 99% of life completely out of reach for me. And then just try and then just try to figure out what this 1% that I could.1 (28m 24s):Yeah. I mean, that's what trauma does to you. That's what it does. It says you are, you can't even, it's not safe to even dream in your own fantasy. So most what I'm finding is as the more I talk to people in the more I sort of do research for like my own writing on trauma, on like serial killers, really. But like that the trauma is so crystallized at a young age, right. That there, it cuts off all access to hope. That's the effect of trauma. There is no hope. So you operate in this one, teeny little place of, I'm not going to hope, but I'm still going to live. Cause I'm not going to die. So there's, it's like, it's like, yeah, yeah.1 (29m 6s):There's no hope trauma cuts off the access to pipeline, to hope and to not just joy, but hope.2 (29m 13s):Yeah. And, and if it's true, like we were saying that youth is this short window, the good on the good side is there is hope in your older years that you can evolve to be the person that1 (29m 28s):You really can't. It takes a lot of work and it takes a lot of, it's not easy. And it's like really bizarre how you get there. But if you keep putting in the work and get support, it is possible. Even at 40, like that's the other thing that I am so clear on because I launched this consulting business so crazy. Like I thought I was going to get a nine to five and like, so my consulting business has taken off. Right. Because you've just fantastic. And people are like, how are you having so many clients? This is the reason I have no imposter syndrome. When it comes to this particular skill, like I'm scared as shit to be an actor. I'm scared as shit to write, to be a writer.1 (30m 9s):I'm still doing it, but I'm scared in that way, a screenwriter, a television writer, that kind of thing. But if you ask me to sit down with somebody and help them to pitch themselves and to crystallize their vision of what their thing is, whatever their thing is, I don't care what it is. I have zero imposter syndrome. I know you don't have to hire me. I don't get that's, you know, but I know that I am good at that beyond a shadow of a doubt because things have all come together to show me that. So my own work emotionally, I'm working with you on this podcast and in the entertainment business and my past life and entertainment and getting a master's in counseling, psych literally has prepared me to do this thing.1 (30m 57s):And I have no like, fear that if I'm talking to somebody about it, that they're going to think I'm full of shit, because it's actually the truth of what it's undeniable, it's undeniable, you eat it. And it's because I put in the work. And also I just it's one of the side effects of being a traumatized and neglected child is, is, and then doing the work to work through that is noticing that in other people and where their trauma points are. So now, like I'm literally about to start pitching my services to the district attorney's office for, for trials, for people to do closing lawyers that are scared to do closing arguments in a theatrical way.1 (31m 42s):Isn't that crazy? I was watching the John Wayne Gacy trial and I was like, oh, this guy has an amazing closing in his, his closing argument. The da was so brilliant. And it's known as like, he did this beautiful theatrical, but also tasteful thing. Cause sometimes it can be like a carnival, but like, and so I was like, oh, how do I help people do that? Cause that's, you know, and that's always tricky in the legal system, but I've also worked in the legal system. So I know a little bit, so anyway, that's my new, I'm like, yeah, these, some of these lawyers2 (32m 14s):How I1 (32m 15s):Have like stage fright, so litigators even, and they need help. So anyway, we shall see where that goes, but I don't have, I don't have, I'm not afraid that doesn't, I don't have imposter syndrome about that.2 (32m 28s):Yeah. Oh, thank God. We should all have at least one thing that we don't feel like we're an imposter about1 (32m 34s):One thing. I mean, for God's sake7 (32m 43s):Today on the podcast, we are talking to TJ Harris, TJ terrorists introduced us to the idea of the artist preneur and his background in business is what helped him get to that exciting place. So please enjoy our conversation with TJ Harris.2 (33m 2s):Okay. All right. All right. Congratulations. TJ Harris, you survived1 (33m 9s):And you did it with some very like your energy just from the emails and from your life is like so positive, ridiculously positive, which I adore and which I think we need. And also you call yourself and you are an extra preneur,8 (33m 29s):Brilliant1 (33m 30s):Artists, preneur artists are brilliant. Brilliant, brilliant mixing of that. Like I love that. Did you come up with that or?8 (33m 39s):Yeah, well I think so. I probably stole it from somebody else, you know, as all artists do. Yeah. But I have, I have, I started in business before acting, so I came to lading to acting and filmmaking later in life. I'm 34 right now. And this I've been on this journey for about six years. So I, I kind of started out like in finance, I studied, I got a general studies degree in undergrad. I went to ball, state university in Indiana and I was a business administration major at first and I hated it.8 (34m 19s):Absolutely hated it, but I knew it was during the time, like right before the recession hit where it was like, just get a degree to get a job. So I was like, okay, I'll get a business degree. But I ended up switching over to general studies with a concentration in finance and sociology. And during that time, I, I, I've always felt like I've been kind of in this, this middle ground of not really knowing which route I wanted to go, because I didn't want to become a doctor and I didn't want to become a lawyer and I didn't want to go down this. Like somebody already created my path for me. So I just kind of started experimenting with things, graduated with my degree.8 (35m 2s):I got a job with a company that I'm currently still with. I worked part-time for him. Yeah. So I I'm, I'm a consultant. Part-time1 (35m 12s):Oh, you know, what's so funny. That is so rare that people keep their job after they graduate from a, from a fine arts, like from a conservatory that they, as a master's student. That is fantastic. And why did you keep it? Like, could you love that work? What makes you want to keep it?8 (35m 30s):No. So, I mean, they know, I don't really love it. So I actually quit. I quit prior to coming to going to TGS for grad school. So the plan was just to, just to be done with it because I really want to transition out of this industry, but it keeps pulling me back somehow. So I quit. And then I had an exit interview and someone that when I first started with the team, the PR one of my colleagues ended up being the manager of the team when I was leaving. So did an exit interview and I was like, Hey, if you all, like, I'll come back and help out while I'm in school, if you all need my help.8 (36m 10s):So six months later, they brought me back as a contractor. So I was working in like, ha basically all my bills were paid for through working this job. Part-time while being at TTS1 (36m 24s):Here, here's the thing. This is brilliant for a lot of reasons. But one of is which, you know, I teach BFA fours at the theater school and, and now they have a class and I don't know, you may have had something to do with it. I don't know that that's called actors as, as entrepreneurs. There's like a, but, but it reminds me of like, they're trying to, but you already did that on your own. So like you, I never, it is so brilliant that you were able to maintain that job so that you might guess is you were able to live, like you had some Dota live on. Right.8 (37m 1s):I didn't take out any additional student loans or anything like that. I did just the bare minimum. And I was living with a friend from undergrad. So my rent was like, mama shit. He charged me charged charge, like 600 or $700 to be in a really nice place. I didn't have to pay your abilities. And I was living with a friend that I knew, so, and it was, it was, so the reason I quit is because I asked to go remote from my previous manager, but they didn't really work that out for me. So I quit. And I was like, you know what? I don't, I don't need it. So they brought me back and it was like, it was a part-time remote. And I already knew that job. And I was, I was basically locked site.8 (37m 43s):So like in the middle of rehearsal on breaks, I was doing work. It's all project based work. I was doing work in between rehearsals in between classes. I would check in and check my emails and just kind of set my own hours. And so when, like when the pandemic hit, I was already in the work from home mindset.2 (38m 2s):I have to stop you for one second. Cause there's so many things that you're saying I want to respond to. One is it's always a good sign, a good omen when just organically, the conversation turns to exactly what she and I were talking about before we started talking to you, we were talking about student loans and what a albatross they are for so many people so that you did yourself, such a favor by not having to go down that path. But also what I, what we always find in the MFA's is they really already know how to hustle, right? Because they've been in the workforce, hustling is like the thing you have to be as an actor.2 (38m 42s):And I feel like that isn't writ large enough when you're in a training program. Like, listen, you can learn about intention till the cows come home. But what you really have to be able to do is figure out how to do a lot of things all the time. Right?1 (39m 0s):Go ahead, go ahead.8 (39m 1s):Oh, I was going to say, yeah, I was, I was already hustling. I was working the full-time job and then immediately go into rehearsal for four hours and then rehearsing on my own after rehearsal and then going back to a job the next day.1 (39m 13s):Well, so this leads me to a question that maybe you can answer, which is okay. So the MFA, what I'm noticing, cause I also am doing a little workshop with some of the MFA actors this year and a writing workshop because I'm really interested in writing8 (39m 28s):Ones or twos or threes. It's all weird. Now1 (39m 32s):I know it's all weird. No, these are twos. And, and anyway, what I'm learning is that maybe, and you can see what you think about this. Maybe we need to look at restructuring acting conservatories to be more like MFA programs versus BFAs. Because like yourself, we have found that the MFA actors who graduate seem way more prepared to live the life of an, of a, of an artist preneur versus the BFAs who are like, I don't know, they seem like daring, like losing it.1 (40m 12s):Right. So what is your thought on that MFA versus BFA for you?8 (40m 17s):So it's a catch 22 because obviously like I wanted my MFA experience and the BFS, you know, we worked together, we rehearsed together and we did shows together and we were offered a lot of the same classes, but also you want that distinction of like, I'm paying more to get this specialized area. And I don't know if when I was 18 or 22, if I would have been in that mindset, like, I don't know what I want it then. So I think it might've been, I think it's a lot to process studying, acting and the business of acting and to make it all make sense, unless you already have an area that you're interested in and you can like apply while you're in, in school from the business side.2 (41m 16s):Did, did your career in business set that intention for you to be an artist preneur from before you ever started the program before you were restarted your MFA?8 (41m 28s):For sure. Yeah. I, so I can, I consider getting my MBA and I was looking at like Northwestern or, and just to preface, I had really had no interesting getting my masters. DePaul was the only school that I applied for because I, I was considering moving to Chicago or LA and I just wanted the training because I didn't study theater and, and undergrad. So I just wanted the training and I was like, you know what? I grew up in I'm from Northwest Indiana. I'm from Gary. And I knew, I knew of DePaul and I really, I searched top 25 MFA programs.8 (42m 10s):And I was like, oh, this isn't in Chicago. And then I looked at like UC San Diego, because that would get me close to LA. So I applied to DePaul and going into it. I told myself that I was never going to get my masters unless it was for something that I absolutely loved, like absolutely without a doubt. So it was acting. And I knew that I knew that I didn't want to get out of school and be poor. Cause like I don't, I don't like the concept of being a struggling poor artists.2 (42m 45s):Well, thank you. Thank you for saying that, that I really appreciate that because that persists as a myth that we all need to be living in a Garret somewhere. But how did you audition when you never studied that? Or did you ever act?8 (43m 2s):I was, I was acting, I was doing like community theater and I had an agent. I was doing improv. I was doing commercials and auditioning for TV and film and doing a lot of auditioning for theater and taking like workshops and classes. I had a vocal coach, so I was training, but it was like a self study type of training. And I never really had the core foundation of what acting is all at once. So I don't honestly, it's just one of those things where I like I'm, I'm very much a spiritual. And like you put out, you get whipped back what you put out into the universe. And like this life, the life that I've been kind of creating for myself is very surreal because things just like on paper, things should not happen the way that they have, you know?1 (43m 48s):Oh, tell us about that. Okay. So what, first of all, my question, my, my feeling is good. Good for you because I think you're making it, it sounds like it's exciting. Things are happening and they're coming together for you. So I guess my first question would be is what is the most exciting thing that is happening for you? Right this second,8 (44m 9s):This second wall, I just established my production company, my film production company in December. And I haven't launched like technically to the public, right until next month. Like I have an official launch day, May 15th next year, next year, next month, while next month. And the most exciting things that are happening are like, I have a small business client lined up for mark doing marketing work. I have someone that approached me for producing a web series that we're kind of developing the scripts. And then last night, DePaul school of cinematic arts student approached me to produce their MFA thesis, which is going to be a sag, a sag agreement.8 (44m 55s):So we just locked that in and that'll be, and I, I can't talk about it too much right now, but that's, we're shooting that in August.2 (45m 4s):Congratulations.8 (45m 5s):So even all of those things are just kind of happening and I haven't even really hit the ground. Yeah.2 (45m 11s):Oh my God. You're going to skyrocket. So what ways, if any, did the theater school experience challenge what you already knew about acting from having been a professional actor before the program?8 (45m 28s):In a lot of ways, it actually made me, it kind of hurt me a lot because I was very naive going into, and I was a lot more free and a bigger risk taker. And then when I got into TTS, you know, you start peeling back all of those layers about yourself and you're getting constant criticism and people were telling you to experiment, but also it's, you can't really experiment because you're getting graded and you're supposed to be taking risks and shows, but you're also getting a rehearsal and performance grades. So they call it caused a lot of like internal conflict. Where,1 (46m 4s):Why does that happen? Is that just the nature of school? I'm really curious as to why. So we have a beginner's mindset, right. Which is a beautiful thing. A lot of us, when we go in some of us, some of, you know, some of your classmates could, like some of ours probably would have been acting since they were like one month old, but for most of us, we didn't know what the hell was going. I didn't anyway. It really was going on. Yeah. So what is it when you say it's cut? Cause you said it was kind of bad, which I totally can relate to the idea of then going from being more free, to being more self-conscious and maybe like precious more about the work, but like what happened? What is the process that makes that happen? TJ, like, I don't get it.8 (46m 42s):I think, I think a lot of it is self-induced of like being in the competitive environment and I camp, I come from a sports background and wanting to just like love competition in a healthy manner. So I think a lot of it is that. And then I think a lot of it is just taking when you're, when you're told that there's so many different things that you need to change about yourself to kind of start fresh aching. Did it eat away at you? And like, and in the midst of like your learning, all your, like exposing yourself to all of this childhood trauma that you didn't even know exist in your body is going through all of these changes.8 (47m 29s):And you're releasing of this, these emotions that you didn't know existed. The reflection was great, but I think it was also like so much in such a little time to where before I was just kinda like, fuck it. Like, I don't have anything to lose. Like I've never acted I'm going to do this my way, regardless of what they think. And I think in grad school, I got back into a mindset of like, oh no, I actually care what they think.1 (47m 58s):Well, the other thing that is because I am a, I, I was listening to the thing you said about the sports mentality or a sports background, like, okay. Like, I was really good at basketball, unbeknownst to me in eighth grade. Okay. Like, shockingly, I was like this overweight kid, but I was really good at basketball. Okay. I didn't know I was good. I just, someone was like, Hey, try out for the team. We need people. I was like, well, I'm doing nothing else. But anyway, I turned out to be really good and I had fun because I had no expectations. I was like, okay, well they want me to play. Someone wants me. And it turns out I was really good. But then when I tried out for the high school team and it was like serious business, of course I never made the team.1 (48m 41s):And I never even went back to tryouts after day one, because I was like, oh, I'm not, this is, I'm not now it's serious business. Now this is like where, where the big boys and girls really play and it's competitive, more competitive. And it's more like, it felt more businesslike, you know, instead of fun. So maybe that has, I don't know. I could really relate to that sports analogy of like, when you're free, you're going to play better. You're going to be a better athlete. Right. Cause you can. So it's like how to maintain that freedom as an artist. If we bring it back to the theater school, like how to maintain that freedom to do what you want to do and experiment. And at the same time, take what they're giving you, but not care what they think.1 (49m 22s):It doesn't seem possible to me,8 (49m 23s):It doesn't. And I think like mid grad school. So probably second year before quarantine and everything happened. I think that was the year where I was like, okay, this is my second year. I know that. I know that I w I like, I really want to set myself up for success beyond just acting. But also I know that the stakes are high, like, or I made them high for myself. Like, oh, I gotta, I have to get an agent. And then you see all of that. You see it, all of your classmates, like they're starting to get representation early, before graduation in the middle of the pandemic. So like, it's like, oh, all of this pressure, and you don't know how the industry is going to be when you get out.8 (50m 6s):And also, like, I think I got back into the mindset of which I started in of like, okay, I feel behind already, because I started acting at the age of 28 and I didn't study. I haven't been studying since I was the age of five. Like I grew up in a performing arts family, but I was not other than just doing improv and having fun and making sketches with friends. So like, I didn't have anyone around me as a mentor in my friend group or in my family that could just kind of guide me. So I got this sense of urgency when I first started like, okay, I have to learn everything possible.8 (50m 47s):So I didn't care then. But like, when I was in grad school, I just started caring more about what my life could be and what it wouldn't be if I didn't get what I wanted. And I think, I just1 (51m 4s):Think she8 (51m 4s):Was as a lot of pressure.1 (51m 6s):So did you enjoy your time there sometimes some, like, did you, what would you say if someone came to you like were coming to you and say, like, what was your takeaway from that theater school experience in terms of high points and low points?8 (51m 22s):I, you know, I've, I, I loved it despite like the first year I will say the first year was brutal. It was brutal. My, my cohort, I love my cohort. We went through like a title nine investigation the first quarter. So it was like emotionally draining, just the, you know, being in a new environment and conservatory to start. And then you have like a sexual harassment case happening that creates like our own type of social distancing thing, where the person can't be in class, we have to go through, like, we're getting Student, this was a cohort member. Who's no longer with the program.8 (52m 3s):They got expelled, but, okay. So yeah, we're going through that. And we're navigating like intimacy and like how to get around all of this in our first quarter at DePaul. So a lot happened and it drew us together a lot.2 (52m 19s):I'll say my God. I mean, that door normally happens anyway, just because of the intimacy of being in voice and speech classes, but having that to go through, I mean, that, that probably in the end, sorry for whoever got hurt in that experience, but probably in the end boded. Well, for everybody just being able to, to judge8 (52m 37s):It did it did. So yeah, that first year was rough. I also went through, like, I went through a racial profiling scenario in the theater school that ended up leaking out to media when the George Floyd things happened in 2020, like that It's a whole thing. I was there's you, where were you all in the, you, weren't in the new building. So1 (53m 5s):We're old, we're old as hell. We've we, we graduated in 97 and 98. So no,8 (53m 12s):So, so I, I was like napping before rehearsal on the second floor, which is next to like the marketing section. And there's like a couch kind of blocked off, but you know, everyone sleeps in theater school cause you spend like 98% of your time there. And there was a, there was an Encore, a duty officer patrolling. And I think he was new because he had never, I never seen him before anyway. So he like woke me up and then started questioning me and like asking why I was there and who I was and asking for my ID. And I'm like, no, I go to school here.8 (53m 52s):And then I was like, why, why did you, why did you wake me up? And then he told me that because someone saw on camera and called to check that there was someone in the building that shouldn't be there. Okay. So we went through this whole process of like investigating and there's no cameras in the theater school. So he lied about why he stopped me. It was, it was, you know, I mean older, like I'm not at a typical theater type look anyway, the case got thrown out because they couldn't like, they couldn't find enough evidence to prove that he was in the wrong, even though he did wrong.8 (54m 34s):So they kind of went by that. So that's, this is all first year, right? So the case got,2 (54m 38s):Oh my God, you've graduated.8 (54m 42s):Yeah. So the case got closed and then we just kinda let it go. But after that first year, I was like, you know what? This was a more emotional turmoil. And I refuse to have the final two years go this way. So that's when I really started focusing on, okay, I'm going to do this. I'm going to get through school and like get every ounce of it out that I can. And that, and that's kind of like this that's when I kind of started developing like truly developing my production company. It had been in the works for awhile, but that's when I really got serious about it. And then the pandemic hit and like I had a lot of extra free, free time and you know,2 (55m 23s):Oh my God, I, I don't think there, there could have been any more calamity that you were facing at this time and you and you, so you truly survive school it on such a deeper level than I think I could, I can attest to, I want to go back to something you were saying earlier, when you were talking about picking careers, you were saying, I didn't want to be a doctor and I didn't want to be a lawyer. And so my assumption was that that's what your parents are. And then you said it's a performing arts family. So tell us more about your performing arts family.8 (55m 58s):Yeah. So my mom, she trained in classical singing and she's not a professional singer. My sister was in a performing arts high school and she's 10 years older than I am. So I grew up exposed to like, I grew up exposed to her in a girl group and around artists and around theater. Like my mom was kind of a, she's a public speaker and a politician her own way because I lived in Arkansas for about five years during my childhood. And it was a small town and everyone knew her and she, she ran this, this preschool, but she also did a lot of things in the community where she would have like women's support groups and she would go do like these leadership workshops.8 (56m 46s):And she's, I also grew up in a Baptist church and in the black church. So I, I grew up seeing performances a lot in a lot of theatrical performances and seeing my mom speak and she's so like articulate and powerful and I always admired her like, wow, she can get up in front of all these people and speak and like enjoy it. And I could not because I was super shy, like super shy. And I think it's because people told me that I was shy. So I had no interest in performing. Cause I was just terrified of it. And1 (57m 24s):I have to pause there for a psychological moment. Isn't that interesting. I did not realize that about shy kids. That a lot of times they're told, oh, this is the shy one. Just like, oh, this is the, you know, whatever one. And then it becomes a self-fulfilling thing. Like this is my, this TJ, he he's the shy kid. And maybe he wouldn't have been so shy if it hadn't been reinforced and reinforced. That's so interesting. It's just like what we tell ourselves like, oh, I can't do that. I can't play basketball at camp, but I'm this one, my sisters, that one, that's so interesting to me. Cause shy you, I mean just shows how people change and w how we aren't really what people say we are.1 (58m 5s):So anyway,8 (58m 6s):I internalized it and what I've psychologically, I think what it was, I grew up around kids. There were way older than me and way more mature. So I'm a, five-year-old around a 15 year old. And my brother who was six years old or 11, and all of my cousins are like 11, 12. I'm not going to be able to articulate the way that they're articulating and expressing themselves. But, so I think I just kind of withdrew within myself when I wasn't able to do what they were doing, which ties back into me, never acting is because I never thought it was a possibility because I saw them being able to do these things, but I didn't feel like I could express myself that way. So I just did sports.2 (58m 51s):Okay. Well, and actually that's kind of a pretty good bridge. Really. If you feel like if you were any bit in your shell, sports does help people come sort of come into who they are a little bit, but what I wanted to ask you was, did you, when did you, when did you figure out that you are not shy and when did you decide that this could be something that you would do?8 (59m 19s):I think in my probably, you know, I never, I've always known that I, I wasn't shy. It just depended on who I was around. You know, what, what group I was around. Because if you, like, if you're around my childhood friends and people, I went to high school with, they'll be like, he is not fucking shy. Like what, he's the worst, actually, he's the worst. Once you get them going? I think it has a lot to do with code switching and being in environments. I was very observant as a kid, you know, because I was shy and I listened a lot.8 (1h 0m 1s):So I think it was more of, I like to observe people around me before I speak. So I knew I wasn't shy, but I, I also knew that I wanted to be able to have a voice and figure out what that looked like. And that was kind of the journey of me that led me to acting is okay. I want to be able to speak and express myself and I want the tools to be able to do it. I just don't know what that looks like.2 (1h 0m 33s):Can you tell us about some of your favorite theater school experiences like performances or, or classes8 (1h 0m 41s):Favorite? Okay. Let's Griffin is a favorite of all. She, I could talk about her for days. Phyllis is a voice, was our, my voice teacher and my second year, and just her spiritual and gentle approach and having a black woman as a faculty member was huge. Those are, so those are some of my biggest highlights. So it's probably going to be more on like me and who I had around me. So just for context, I was the only black male in the MFA program when I went in.8 (1h 1m 26s):So there were two black women in my cohort. And then the class that MFA two's ahead of me, there was one black woman. And then the, is there was one black woman. So I was the only, like, not only was I, the, I was the only black male in the MFA program in my thirties, going into an environment where like everyone out of the other younger black men were 18, 19 20. So there's like this huge gap where I didn't really, I'd never felt like I had someone that I could talk to, you know, so, but great experiences.8 (1h 2m 7s):Our lady of second year, it was majority, all black tasks, a play centered around three well Rwandan girls who saw, saw our, the Virgin mother, Mary, so apparitions of it. So that was a great to being that environment and do that. And then I did this really cool in the, the big black box in the heli. I did this, this horror comedy job, a play called neighborhood three requisition of doom. And I got to play three different characters and I love the horror genre. So it was cool to really dive into that and work with the cast.8 (1h 2m 51s):And then that final quarter of the second year, the pandemic hit. And one of our professors that we didn't know, which was great. We were terrified because we hadn't worked with him, but he's an alumni, Sean Paris. I don't know if you're aware of Sean Paris.1 (1h 3m 12s):I know Sean,8 (1h 3m 12s):Sean, Sean has become a big brother to me. He is so amazing. And that was like the point that was game-changing for me, because it was during, it was during the start of the pandemic where I had not only a black faculty member teaching, but also a black male faculty member teaching me and I, that like that was when I really felt like I was able to open up and truly start translating who I am into acting and into my art or my art1 (1h 3m 42s):So necessary. What, what did, what was Shawn teaching or was he directing?8 (1h 3m 47s):So it was all remote. He was teaching us Meisner and viewpoints, but we were translating it to on camera because everything was done. So I got to really start building my relationship with the camera, Our relationship and the environment, because there's not really on camera for, at the theater school and there needs to be more And I love TV and film is the route that I'm, I want to go mainly in my career.1 (1h 4m 18s):So what, when you say like, that really opened you up in that really? What do you think it, I guess what I'm trying to, I want to get clear about, like, what did it do for you as a performer to have that experience with Sean? Like what, what, what happened? What changed in you?8 (1h 4m 38s):I got to hear his experiences and see him work because he really, he wasn't, he was a student as well, and he, like, we got to watch him do monologues and watch him work. And I think just being in the environment where someone was like me, literally, who was like me and has experienced it, experienced the type of things that I've experienced in life. It's one of those things where like, growing up, I didn't see a lot of people that looked like me on TV or in film. So I never thought it was a possibility. And sh working with Sean in being around him really opened up what acting can look like for me.2 (1h 5m 26s):Oh, that's so beautiful. And I'm never not surprised in all of the ways that representation matters. I never thought about it mattering in the classroom, but it certainly does. I don't know if you got a chance to listen to, we interviewed Justin Ross and he talked about our lady of Cuba. And one of the things that he was talking about was that, that it sounds to me. So I'm asking you to, for clarification, it sounds to me like that production fostered a whole pivot in terms of the curriculum and, and, and how he said it to us as we warmed up differently than was sort of the, the, the usual at the theater school.2 (1h 6m 14s):And that, that production helped create a new normal for that. Is that, was that your experience?8 (1h 6m 21s):It did. And I think a lot of that has to do with our graduating class with BFA and MFA my class, my cohort was very much of like, we'll burn this institution down if we need to, like, we're, we're changing shit, like regardless. And a lot of it had to do with going through what we went through that first quarter with the title nine situation. It was like we had each other's backs and it was the same way with our lady of Cuba. Oh, if like we have each other's backs because we went through some shit in there too with like,1 (1h 6m 54s):Yeah, they, yeah, it didn't, it was like, there was a lot of bad shady shit that went down right there.8 (1h 7m 1s):A lot of shit going down. Yeah. And a lot of like unbiased prejudice and racism that was happening with the people who were working on crew, not really having an understanding of the story that we're telling and not really allowing us to tell the story and not really getting our feedback as you know, it was, it was a lot of like an all black cast, but being essentially produced by all white people was right. You know, and there was a lot of conflict during that production, but I do think,1 (1h 7m 40s):Do you feel like it changed though yeah.8 (1h 7m 43s):To change the culture of TTS? For sure. Because we start, it was, I think that production and the things that happened during it really started shifting the culture of theater in TTS before the culture started shifting in 2020s. It was kind of like the, the catalyst before that.2 (1h 8m 9s):Oh my God. Yeah. Only like 50 years too late, not too late, but 50 years late. Like w we've had a of conversations because your experience of being the only black male in, in our generation there, yeah. There was always an, any class, only one person of color, pretty much. I mean, maybe in a couple of years there were two. And certainly Phyllis was our only are ever professor of color. Is she still the only professor of, I mean, I know the new Dean is a woman,8 (1h 8m 39s):But the only 10 years1 (1h 8m 42s):Tenured and full time, even maybe, I don't know, like adjuncts. Yes. We're cause I'm adjunct. And I know in my cohort of adjuncts there are, but I think full-time like, it's still, what, what, wait, wait, what?8 (1h 8m 55s):Yep. Well, Christina, Anthony, Chris, Anthony is new. She came in our second year. So that, she's also a really great she's. She came from California and she's, she has a lot of background in activism and in the classical. So she, she is a full-time staff member, faculty member, faculty member.2 (1h 9m 18s):Do you remember your audition? And can you tell us about what your audition was like? Yeah.8 (1h 9m 22s):Yeah. So get that. So when I apply for the audition, they were like, you can do the preliminary video or you can just come to in-person and I didn't have any experience with self-tapes. And like, I was still raw. I was like, I don't want to put a monologue on video. Like I won't have a chance at all at all, if I do this, but during that time, I was already preparing for Kentucky Shakespeare auditions. So I had been working monologues and working on a lot of different things with my, my vocal coach. So I did in-person auditions. And it's very funny because I was currently in rehearsals for the show of chorus line, the musical, and then think auditions were on Wednesday, Wednesday.8 (1h 10m 17s):Yeah. Auditions were on Wednesday in Chicago. And then there was an audition for cau UC San Diego in Chicago. Like they were, you know, all of the colleges they come and I was like, okay, I'll, I'll, I'll get an audition for UC San Diego. And it happened to be the day before the DePaul auditions. So I knew that I wasn't going to go to UC San Diego just because I felt like they don't know who I am. It would be like me applying to Yale and they don't, they have no idea who I am. So I have no chance. So I used that as like a warmup for DePaul, used it for a warmup to get, just kind of get the jitters out and audition.8 (1h 10m 59s):And then as I was leaving the, I can't, we were in some hotel downtown, maybe the Hyatt or something like that, as I was leaving, they were like, Hey, we're doing auditions for Columbia and New York. If you have a headshot, a resume and want to get a slot, I'm like, oh yeah, I have these printed out. So I signed up for a slot and then I went and auditioned for Columbia. So it was like, oh, all right. I got these two auditions under my belt. I feel, I feel ready going into tomorrow. Right.1 (1h 11m 25s):Wait, can I just say how brilliant it is that you decided to use them as practice? This is the sign of someone who is ready to do their craft when they see not those opportunities as a chance to have a panic attack and die, but as a chance to use their skills and practice and get in front of people and practice, that is a true artist, entrepreneur mindset. Like that is a better mindset. Thank gosh. You had that anyway. Okay. So then do you went to Columbia? Did you do all those?8 (1h 11m 55s):I did the Columbia. I did the Columbia and you know, there were, I was in the lobby and just ki