by She’s a woman of fire, passion and inspiration. Last week, Sophie Grégoire Trudeau launched “Entre nous. Mieux se connaître, mieux s’aimer”. In it, she recounts moments in her life that describe many of the universal issues of our time. Her stories are accompanied by interviews with experts in psychology and neuroscience, thinkers and celebrities, from Dr. Gabor Maté to author Liz Plank and swimmer Mark Tewksbury. We recognize ourselves in them, because between experience and science, there’s us, humans, trying to move towards our raison d’être.
I first met Sophie when I was running Clin d’œil magazine in the early 2000s. Back then, she was the beautiful arts columnist for LCN and Salut Bonjour. Our relationship has remained very friendly (just like this home video I’m presenting here!) Over the years, we’ve shared some wonderful moments, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes. Late Sunday, I was lucky enough to catch up with her for a brief chat on Zoom in her hotel room between interviews, just before she joined Guy A. Lepage on Tout le monde en parle.
When she was a teenager, Sophie worked in the refreshment booth on the fifth hole of the St-Donat Golf Club in Lanaudière. As a young woman, her career was overshadowed by an eating disorder, which is now on top of her agenda. With a degree in commerce, she worked in advertising at the Diesel agency, now Sid Lee, before fully embracing her talent as a communicator by becoming a TV columnist and host. At the time, there was no way of predicting that her next lover, Justin Trudeau, would become Prime Minister of Canada, and that in so doing, she would reinvent the role of First Lady in her own way, remaining true to her values, creativity and spirit. Unwittingly, Sophie also broke new grounds by separating from the father of her children while he was still Prime Minister. Today, she invites to reinvention through the transition of her couple, maintaining a positive co-parenting relationship. While this is easier to do when the protagonists have cultivated a healthy relationship throughout their union, we understand how much it requires a healthy dose of self-respect and respect for the other person. That’s the woman I know and like, and who is presenting her book today.
