In a Monastery Garden / Albert W. Ketèlbey

My Thoughts Were So Loud -

(Thought-Random)

               

                   they

                

                            turned

                                     my world

                                             so..........

                                                 

                                             

                    upside down

                                                        !!!

Culprit Semantics

(Thought-Random)

         Search for the meaning of  'culprit'  and answers  you would get would be  'one accused or guilty of a crime or fault' or  'one who is the source of a problem'.

.

        So there have actually been diverse identifications of a so-called 'culprit'.  One comes from a  research on the housing crisis that 'bedevils the current U.S. economy'.... with economist, Frank Stafford saying that rather than subprime mortgages as the real 'culprit', it was the 'aggressive refinancing and an increase in the use of adjustable rate mortgage in loans'.   

        In the field of diabetes control, the 'culprit' was not hypoglycemia as thought to have caused increased deaths.... this was gleaned from the Accord Study of  Dr. Matthew. Riddle,  et al, ....rather,  it was 'unsuccessful intensive therapy' that did it.

        And in a certain area of military analysis,  a 'culprit' apparently found was 'the Stuxnet virus purported to have infected the industrial computers as used by the Iranian nuclear industry'.

        These are but a handful of segments from accounts of various types of faults and causes of mishaps one could gather.  And not one of them is a happy one,  you'll have to agree with me.   But one time in my recall,  I definitely thought it was a joy for me to be called a 'culprit'!   Strange?    It definitely was!  Entertainingly bizzare, in fact!  See, I have mentored a lot of my students and friends in and out the academics, but there was one particular one of my favorites in the academe who went with me all the way to Toastmasters International. 

        This particular student  had been with me in the university-wide speaker organization of St. Louis University back home in the Philippines.  The organization  was made up of a select group of students invited from the different colleges of the university and who came together for co-curricular training in the communication skills, - particularly in discussion, debate and public speaking.   And they were  known  as the SLU Forensic Society of which I was the Coach-Adviser, - a task I so enjoyed complementing  my teaching Literature, Linguistics, and English classes.  What made the members exceptionally special was their able handling of the group as an organization as well as the excellent performances each did leading to their consistent winning in inter-university competitions,  and in effect,  also bringing home honors to their Alma Mater.  But one of the  significant experiences here for me had been coaching this particular student of mine, this Forensics Member,  for a particular national oratorical contest on drug addiction - which he but nothing won!  Simply awesome!

        Like earlier I indicated, this student of mine joined me in Toastmasters too during his professional life that followed.  And as if not to break the chain at all, I went on with the task of mentoring him in his Toastmaster speeches till cutting the story short,  we met again at the Foxwoods Casino in Connecticut  last year where the year's Toastmasters International speech competitions were held.   It was such pride and pleasure I felt to be told that here,  my former student Hermie Garrobo,  now representing Philippine Toastmasters,  had just won the Regional Competitions and was therefore qualified to compete in the International Speech Contest.  I now belonged to Connecticut Toastmasters Clubs but I was invited to this occasion as Hermie's Guest.

        So I am seated with both him and Wilson Lee, the District Governor of Philippine Toastmasters during the competition.  And when Hermie is called upstage for a short interview,   he tells the audience,  'It is an honor to be here,  Ladies and Gentlemen,  but you know,  the one who started it all for me - the one who 'forced' me to Toastmasters  is actually here with us.... . your honor, may I point to the 'culprit', ...- 'culprit', won't you please stand?'!.....

        

           Well, I did stand - at the prodding of those around me.... then he said,  'Thank you, Ma'am Sonja Chan".... and  that was all the world of semantics that meant the world to me at that very moment!                                                                                                                                                                                                        

'

Anxiety and Speech Delivery

(A Toastmaster Basic Speech)

Ladies and Gentlemen,

        As Toastsmasters and Toastmasters to be,  it goes without saying that we are at least  familiar with aspects that go along with speech-making and speech delivery....you know: - choosing a subject matter, analyzing your audience, writing the speech, rehearsing it  and then delivering it....... together with all the varied aspects that kinda mingle with all those strands.....making that seemingly simple thing called speech  actually complicated.  But not really complicated for you,  fellow Toastmasters.

       Now  let me for my task tonight deal with some aspects of the anxiety that normally go with speech delivery.  The terms 'fear of public speaking',  'nervousness', 'anxiety',  apparently all point to the same thing but this is quite normal and  - even expected - and good, because it stimulates us.  Both beginning and seasoned speakers have experienced anxiety, which only means that you and I may not be exempted from this. Nonetheless, to be a good public speaker, you need to be at ease and to be able to project a sense of calm authority. Then  will your audience be able to relax and come along for the ride. The following you probably already know but I am certain will also be useful to recall and to remember. So let's have them:

           First:  Prepare well – Lack of preparation and organization can cause anxiety.  If you have uncertainties about how carefully you prepared your speech, the thought will make you insecure; - therefore, do your homework well and feel that confidence grow out of the knowledge that you indeed have prepared well.

           Second:  Practice -  There is much value in rehearsing your piece. Do it as much as you can.  Pretend either in the confines of your room or in the company of a friend or friends that this is the real thing.  Pretend you are in front of an audience, listen to how you sound until you like the way you sound and the way you feel as you pretend delivering your piece,  - then try to remember this feeling when you stand in front of your real audience and it will sustain you.

           Third:  Walk briskly to the platform/lectern – Walk directly, exude a sense of confidence and eagerness to impart something significant to your audience.  Don’t shuffle along the way or glance nervously at anybody at all.  And when you reach the lectern,  take a deep breath, smile just a little as you give your listeners a sweeping glance before you start your speech.

            Fourth  Concentrate on the message -  Put your attention on the communication task that is before you rather than on whatever nervousness you feel.  Put priority on the significant message you have to put across rather than on the less significant feeling of anxiety you might have.

            Fifth: Focus on relaxing – As you breathe, tell yourself ‘I am relaxed.’ over and over again as you try to clear your mind of anything else but the message on hand. A trick might be to imagine looking at each and everyone in the audience as naked so that you will feel superior to them. Think that they are naked while you are clothed and so you are in control.

            and Sixth: Use movement to release tension  -  Should you feel any shaking or trembling, walk to another location, use the chalkboard, gesture. You could take a few steps, either side-to-side or toward the audience. If you are speaking from a lectern, you can get down from it and later get back to it.  Allow your muscles to flex by tightening them slowing starting from your feet up to your legs, stomach, chest, shoulders and then release the tension as quietly and as naturally as you can so nobody notices what you are doing.

          And whatever you do, keep your nervousness to yourself.  You never actually look or sound as bad as you think you do so you don’t need to tell your audience about it.  Chances are they will never know you are nervous unless you tell them yourself.

       So what are those few that you might need to  remember? We could have them again:

                Prepare well and feel that confidence grow out of that knowledge that you are prepared.
                Practice until you like the way you sound and feel as you are pretending that you are already
                                    delivering your speech and then remember this feeling as you stand in front of
                                    your real audience.
               Walk briskly to the platform to excude a sense of confidence and an eagerness to impart value.
               Concentrate on the message rather than on the less significant feeling of anxiety.
               Focus on relaxing.  clear your mind of anything but the message - remember the trick...
               Use movement as naturally as you can...

        And that movement, I should start doing right now as I also start to look for our

Mister Toastmaster......

            

           

                           

Remember, Reflect, and Renew

(Thought-Random)

        Moments in time when I simply allow my existence at a standstill, - I let my mind wander through the labyrinth that make up my past year, and strangely,  I seem to extract from it selectively only the most hurting frustrations, thwarting disappointments and  disconcerting denials that have painted my experiential world.

       Talk about an early morning that had wrapped me up with overflowing enthusiasm....  to meet up with one whom I looked forward to receive from some loving words,  or at least encouraging ones, ....only to get a cold splash on the face with words that cut instead.  Talk about setting a goal and then to try reaching out to it with blood and tears, ....only to watch all that labor slip through my fingers like sand at the end of the day. Talk about the planning I so meticulously crafted to earn some distinction of efficiency, .....only for things to go haywire at the last moment so that guess what, I earn a  'commendation'  for incompetence  instead!   Why,  I ask,  can't recall be anything  at all but painful!

        So I sit back and let the process walk its way.  This is a process, I must insist, - if only to give myself a breather of sorts.  Because life, it is said, is not about accomplishment !   It is about doing,  participating,  growing.   It is a journey rather than a destination:   -a series of events unfolding as you make your way.  Now wasn't it Washington Irving who believed that "little minds attain and are subdued by misfortunes,  great minds rise above them"?   From somewhere I also read that adversity can strip the music out of life only if we allow it to.  So what kind of a mind am I going to choose for my own?  Am I to let my life empty of its music?  And come to think of it, - life is actually a blend of rain and sunshine!  So it can't be that all I have is rain!

       Of all those failures and setbacks,  shouldn't I then continue to ask:  -couldn't it be possible that there came back-to-back with them a touch of fun and enjoyment, at least, .....or some hopeful meaning or lesson learned, ......or even just a thin shadow of beauty and splendor?   Couldn't it have been that when I closed my eyes to insult , ....and offered, in a turnabout way,  understanding in terms of the healing words I reciprocated with, .....it  gave  me that peace and joy I couldn't explain?  Couldn't it have been that when failure and helplessness were the highlights of my day,  these made me grab hold of life in a way that I turned my back to the uncomfortable present and sought for more challenging alternatives?  Couldn't it be that when I questioned God why I must go through the fire, He gently took my hand in His and blessed me with insight into a transcendent reality that overshadowed the problems I nursed as if they were at best puerile?  And I realize all these, in fact, certainly were!

        As it is,  I have been staring only at half the whole of my world.  I have to admit that remembering is supposed to be an encompassing reckoning because each and every aspect of my life is apparently connected to one another.  I have to have all the pieces for a total reflection....to fully appreciate and fathom how rich it is and from there, control my choices..... at least to make the best of the choices I make  as I am aware I do not always make the best choices.  And now, the renewal..... reaffirming my resolve to take responsibility for the quality of my life...to make it happen the way I want to take it.

       An unknown poet had written these lines:

                 Life itself can't give you joy,  unless you really will it;
                 Life just gives  you time and space, it's up to you to fill it.


       Sounds like great advice to me.

  


      Thanks much, Frank!

  
                                    

        

                                                                                                          
                                                        

When You Say Nothing At All -Alison Krauss

The Lord's Prayer - Perry Como