Div G's representative (International Speech Contest) to MIRI
At first, I have to admit that I was filled with skepticism as to what this convention could offer. While everyone else was bouncy with excitement, I was jittery with apprehension. Understandable actually, since that was the first time I went to this kind of convention, the first time I competed in International Speech Contest, and the first time I travelled with those people whom I had only known for about a month.
Then, came my first surprise, we would have dinner with the man everyone else had been talking about for months; Papa Gerald Green. My first impression of him: What a sweet man!!! He oozed off such friendliness and warmth that in no time, I felt like I was talking to my own grandfather. We instantly hit it off and after that there was only one thing in my mind: If only he had been a lot younger…(Well Papa, I’m waiting for our second date!)
After that, the hectic schedule of the convention soon cramped into the morning and night sessions but it gave me the opportunity to meet people from other divisions. They were very welcoming, friendly, and yet so experienced. It was a bit daunting to see the numerous pins adorning their suits but once you talked to them, they would be as down to earth as your neighbour next door. Perhaps, there is nothing better to illustrate their conviviality and zest than the uproarious reaction they projected throughout the speech contest.
As we were inching closer to my speech contest session, I believe I turned more and more ghostly because my beloved entourage kept on giving me reassuring looks and asking me if I were okay. Even my normally stern-looking mentor was being especially symphatetic that day. As for me, I could only tell myself to remember the opening line of my speech. Hopefully after a good convincing start, the rest would flow nicely. I was lucky number 6 (it’s lucky because it’s my number) so I waited agitatedly on the edge of my sit. During that agonising wait, I remembered something that my mentor had exasperatedly blurted out the day before: Fel, just think about the message of your speech. What is it that you want to share with them?
With that question in mind, I gradually felt calmer because I stopped looking at it as a competition. I started to think of them as a bunch of people who were excited to hear my story. So, when my name was called, I stepped on the stage with a purpose; to share a piece of my life. Honestly, I don’t know how well or badly I performed that day, but I do know that I’ve given my best and I had tremendous fun. It might sound weird, but I thoroughly enjoyed giving that speech. Probably it was because I knew my comrades from Division G were just metres away but I believe it was also due to the heartwarming response from the audience there. I was simply buoyed by their reaction that it made me deliver my speech with extra oomph.
The gratifying small moments during the convention continued to pour such that I was overwhelmed with bliss. I may not clinch the top spot and go on to the world championship, but that doesn’t bother me. Things like when a lady came over to thank me for touching her life with my story, when we had our night chats despite our heavy eyelids, or when we became expert duck hunters with magic power, are the ones that will always stay indelible in my heart. It is not an overstatement to say then, that I went to Miri with a bunch of friends, but I went home with my second family from Toastmasters.
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