“I want freedom for the full expression of my personality”

–  Mahatma Gandhi

One thing you can’t tell by looking at me is… I once played a bartender in a NY Lottery commercial.

A little bit about me:
I started my journey with TMI Project in 2017 as a participant in the inaugural Black Stories Matter workshop and performance. I had never considered myself a writer, and certainly never considered sharing any story of mine from a stage. The experience was powerful enough that when I was offered the opportunity to continue to train to be a TMI Project workshop leader, I said yes without hesitation. My work in the world could be generalized as working towards liberation in all of the ways, and storytelling is most certainly a means to do so. 

Why do I think people should apply to Stories for Freedom? 
There is something ancient and simple in the act of telling our story. In a world of alternate truths, and an overwhelming amount of story making to capitalize on our attention, storytelling remains a clear and direct manner to express our truth. We need to hear each other’s true stories of freedom. We need to know how others have paved a way and what libratory practices might look like.

How have I experienced freedom through storytelling? 
My own stories were once locked inside of me behind my own fear of the world. Voices like “no one wants to hear that” helped keep me invisible. The crushing weight of vulnerability told me not to trust, and to be cautious. I felt safer being unseen and unheard. That was my preference for so long. But no matter the tactic, freedom is not found in fear. 

The writing space TMI Project provides is a certain holy ground, capable of connecting strangers in the pursuit to expose a moment of truth that reveals a deep humanity. I came to know this firsthand as a writer and consider it an honor to be able to hold space for it to happen for others. The act of sharing, of speaking truth into the room, is a freedom. Fear disseminates. Fear is the absence of love, and loving ourselves enough to let loose our stories is therefore liberation. I desire a space where we can all be free, and for that freedom to spread ​​like wildfire, laying to waste whatever holds us back and opening dormant seeds that have been patiently waiting for our return to whom we have always been.