Kent Tisher has been a follower of the LFF podcast for some time but I only met him after he recently won the Loulabelle's giveaway and was communicating with me regarding the arrangements for the sending of a magnum of Taittinger champagne to him in Canada. I then uncovered his French story and felt I wanted to share it with FrancoFilers everywhere!

Kent is the son of international teachers and grew up in French West Africa. Whilst he and I both agree there is a bigger conversation to be had about colonialism, it was interesting to hear of the way he grew up with French influences that have left a lasting impact. Kent also went to medical school in the French Caribbean on the island of St Martin, so his experiences of French culture internationally are quite varied.

Now living in Canada, Kent works as a palliative care doctor. I can imagine this work would be extraordinarily taxing, as well as rewarding. Kent says one by-product of the work he does is to focus on living his best life. He does this in some ways by connecting his creative side and freeing his mind by engaging in a couple of his other passions, opera singing and piano playing/composition. But he has also travelled extensively and chatted to me about some amazing experiences he has had in France.

Together with his sister and also sometimes with his cousins Kent has done a couple of roadtrips. One particular trip he described to me was a vacation where they all hiked from Dijon through Burgundy. The best part of this trip was that the tour organisers took their luggage from village to village each day so Kent and his family could hike unencumbered through the grape vines. (I imagine it was more like a lovely meandering!)  As he chatted I could actually imagine being there for these experiences. He also explained how drinking champagne in Champagne was a revelation for him! Kent told mer that lots of champagne making happens in local garages and the terroir is so prevalent when tasting the various wines... much more than the large blended champagne houses. I now can't wait to get there!

Sometimes people cross our paths for a reason. I feel so fortunate to have crossed paths now with Kent. I now have a new determination to live my best life as he said, whilst staying my own motto to 'be kind".

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Louise Prichard is the host of the Loulabelle's FrancoFiles podcast.
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