Thursday, February 11, 2016

Ardent Peace Speakers Meet on Feb. 3, 2016

The mission of a Toastmasters club is to provide a mutually supportive and positive learning environment in which every individual member has the opportunity to develop oral communication and leadership skills, which in turn foster self-confidence and personal growth.

Ada, presiding officer for our Peace Speakers meeting today, opens the meeting in a welcoming manner. We have two guests today, and they are ardently greeted and encouraged to say a few words about who they are and why they've graced us with their visit today. (Now ardent is our word for the day, which means enthusiastic or passionate. Members try to use this word as much as possible throughout the meeting.)

Kathryn shares an invocation that ardently speaks to our deepest yearnings as we meet with life's challenges. She notes that darkness can come upon us at any time, but it's important to remember there's a light in all of us that can overcome the darkness. She shares this quote by Albert Camus:

“In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer. And that makes me happy. For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me, within me, there’s something stronger – something better, pushing right back."

Kerri, our Toastmaster for the day, shares that she had an opportunity to show off her public speaking skills at a recent conference. She spoke in front of 150 people, something she previously would have balked at doing. Kerri ardently thanked everyone in the club for their on-going support, which she attributes to her being more confident now in speaking and leadership roles.

Kerri also announces the theme for our meeting, which is focused on love (with Valentine's Day just around the corner). She challenges us to take at least 5 minutes a day to do something we love. Now that's a challenge I'll have fun doing, Kerri!

**Alex, 1st Prepared Speaker, Ardently Shares Love for His Job**

Alex’s speech is Project #2 from the Competent Communication Manual. It focuses on Getting Organized. He is animated and expressive in his delivery. I don’t have an exact copy of his speech, so I paraphrase it. He gives us “The Emergency Perspective,” which takes us into the world of the ER nurse.

Alex speaks of his pride for nursing, the benefits he’s entitled to like wearing PJ's to work, 3-day work-weeks, and working with beautiful women all day. He includes the difficulties, like working with women all day, long hours, and a high stress environment.

Alex shares 3 strategies to get through a day in the ER. They are the ability to notice, being able to ignore anything, and having a loud voice.

Concerning the ability to notice, he touched on how being able to notice things is crucial for success. For example, identifying an alteration in patient speech patterns, he’s aware that a stroke is present sooner and gets appropriate treatment sooner. He also quips about noticing when his female coworkers change their hairstyles, which is also very important!

The 2nd strategy useful in the ER is the ability to ignore, as he is subjected to countless stressors any given day: call bells, doctors yelling at them, patients yelling, and so on. If ER nurses were to actually process all of this stimulus, they would all need to check into the ER themselves for psychiatric evaluation at the end of each shift.

Having a loud voice is the 3^rd strategy, whereby Alex is the patient advocate. He makes certain the patient voice is heard through his own voice in the populated medical discussions that take place away from the patient. He makes sure their wishes are respected.

Alex concludes that working as an ER nurse requires that he is able to notice everything, ignore it all, and yell real loud! This is certainly a perspective that is unique to the work he loves to do, and I suspect Alex does it very well.

**Eva, 2nd Prepared Speaker, Ardently Praises Church**

Eva’s speech is from one of the advanced manuals called The Entertaining Speaker—Project 5: Speaking After Dinner, 8-10 minutes in length. I’m sharing excerpts of what she said about the 125^th anniversary of Crescent Hill Presbyterian Church.

In looking back at the history of Crescent Hill Presbyterian Church, I’ve observed three key characteristics of this congregation: We have a strong community. We are mission-focused. And we have remained relevant by translating our faith into actions that respond to current issues and needs. These qualities give me hope for our future ministry.

Let’s talk about strong community. There’s more to it than outstanding church potlucks. We have survived some major conflicts. The church went through a couple of rough patches early in the 20^th century. In the space of six years, two pastors resigned amid controversy and dissension. But the church survived. And ultimately, these times of testing must have made the community stronger.

A more recent test came in the mid-1980s, when the church session decided—by one vote—to support the Sanctuary Movement, offering a safe haven to refugees fleeing the violence in Central America. For some, this was an act of compassion and justice. For others, particularly those from military backgrounds, it was breaking the law. But the decision came after months of prayerful discussion, including time for members of the congregation to voice their opinions. Because members respected the process, and each other, they were able to live with the final decision.

The desire to minister to those refugees fleeing Central America is one of many examples of the second characteristic I’ve noticed about Crescent Hill Presbyterian Church: our focus on outreach and mission. This emphasis is apparent from the beginning of our history. In 1891, when the church was just a year old, it reached across town and sponsored a mission Sunday school. This mission Sunday school grew into Harvey Browne Presbyterian Church, which is now about three times the size of our congregation—go figure!

Two years later, in 1893, our church reached across the Atlantic Ocean to Africa and helped sponsor the first mission steamboat in Congo. And two years after that, in 1895, we helped start James Lees Presbyterian Church, which became one of our valued partners, most recently in offering English classes for immigrants, a program begun in 2008.

Other examples of mission abound. We have supported overseas mission workers and welcomed many of them as members of our congregation. We’ve helped resettle refugees from Laos, Bosnia, Sudan, and Congo. Our members have built houses with Habitat for Humanity. We’ve helped organize a French Language Outreach Ministry in Louisville and developed a partnership with churches in northeastern Guatemala. We’ve set aside land for a community garden and hosted garden camps for children, some of whom have never grown or eaten a fresh tomato.

We also have worked to make our space accessible to all, including people with disabilities. We’ve gotten rid of stairs and other barriers, improved acoustics, welcomed service animals, and made church entrances more inviting to neighborhoods folks and visitors.

We believe God loves all people, and so we welcome all, whatever their race, class, age, gender, or sexual orientation. Many people who have not felt welcome in other churches have found gracious acceptance in our pews. Our commitment to inclusion extends to the language we use in worship.

Peacemaking and working to end poverty and hunger have also been priorities of our congregation for many years. Our ministry in these areas has extended from local, to national, to global efforts. Our members have marched for justice, written letters to Congress, and donated food and clothing to families in need.

We want to be where Jesus would be: on the side of the poor, the homeless, the immigrants, and the victims of injustice.

So, please join me in wishing a happy 125^th birthday to Crescent Hill Presbyterian Church! May we continue to fulfill Jesus’ prayer to God that his followers “will be one, as we are one”—and the words of the song, “They’ll know we are Christians by our love.”

Eva, this sounds like a church that is walking the talk in an open, inclusive, and empowering fashion. That's an impressive list of significant works they are doing!

Table Topicsmaster Delivers Love Prompts

Kay's role today is to encourage volunteers to draw a question she's created pertaining to love and answer it spontaneously in 1-2 minutes. She asks for volunteers, and one of our guests agrees to give it a try. Such courage Daniel exhibits!!!!!

What is one of the greatest acts of love that you have ever personally witnessed?

Daniel reads this and pauses, not sure what he wants to share. This has happened to all of us Toastmasters at one time or another. So I say, "Just describe something you really love," and he quickly begins talking about playing soccer in the summer time. He loves the game and the fact that anyone can play. They've formed a close league of volunteers who play regularly. If you ask me, this is an act of love - where the game is open to anyone who wants to play, and the players are ardent about sharing the game of soccer.

Describe a place you love dearly and why it's so meaningful or beloved to you.

Abby begins to tell us about a cottage on a lake in Michigan where her grandfather, mother's siblings, and friends often gathered. As a child, it was the only vacation her family had. As years passed, she took others there, and that's where her husband proposed to her. Now she's looking forward to taking the baby she just had to this special place. She notes that it is her most favorite place in the world, and that's saying a lot because she's been to many spectacular places.

What thing do you love to the point that it almost causes you embarrassment?

George admits that the thing he loves to do is argue. He's passionate about it. He often does it on Facebook and claims that he's put his foot in his mouth at times. Why does he love arguing? He loves the contest of ideas. How he addresses what he gets hit with is fun for him.

Later in our meeting, we voted on the Table Topics speech that garnered the greatest interest from listeners, and Abby was the winner. We love it when a guest participates and shines like this!

Evaluators for Both Speeches Share Their Opinions

Ada, evaluator for Alex's prepared speech, admits she enjoyed hearing his tips for being an ER nurse. His speech was interesting and organized. Alex is comfortable expressing himself and utilizes effective body language. Ada loved his use of humor and the flow of his talk. From what he shared, it's apparent that Alex loves his job. She would have liked him to include some personal stories about his nursing experiences so she could visualize life in the ER setting.

Megan, evaluator for Eva's prepared speech, shared that she thoroughly enjoyed her speech about Crescent Hill Presbyterian Church. Her introduction very effectively drew us in and her language was compelling. Eva's use of body language was good. It was impressive hearing about all of the good works going on at Eva's church. The specific stories she shared were interesting, the speech had good flow, and it was easy to follow.

Ada concludes our meeting with a joke that relates to this weekend's Superbowl game:

A guy took his girlfriend to her first football game. Afterwards he asked her how she like the game.

"I liked it, but I couldn't understand why they were killing each other for 25 cents," she said.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Well, everyone kept yelling, 'Get the quarter back!' "

And if it was a Superbowl game, I hope his girlfriend at least enjoyed the commercials!

Maybe you're a visitor to this blog. Welcome!!!!! You've just witness some excerpts from our hour-long Toastmasters meeting. If you're intrigued by opportunities to build or enhance skills in communication and leadership in a safe environment, we can help you with that! Join us and experience some of our meetings. They're enjoyable and fun...and growth is guaranteed if you participate. Drop in any time!

OUR NEXT FEW 2016 MEETINGS:

Wed., Feb. 17 - Conference Room B

Wed., Mar. 2 - Conference Room B

Peace Speakers Toastmasters Club

1st and 3rd Wednesdays (usually)

1:00 - 2:00 p.m.

100 Witherspoon Street

Downtown Louisville, KY

Respectfully submitted,

Kay Chambers

Blogger for Peace Speakers

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Peace Speakers Usher in Three More Members at October 7th Meeting!

Catherine, our president of Peace Speakers, is ready and raring to go today. She decisively declares, "Let's get started! We have a full program today!" and hands the podium over to the invocation leader. With only an hour to conduct our meeting, it's essential to forge ahead dynamically. There's a lot to be enjoyed today!

Eva, our invocation leader, admits that she expressed many "wows" during her recent trip to Turkey. For today's invocation, she read excerpts from the book Help, Thanks, Wow - the Three Essential Prayers:

Wow is often offered with a gasp, a sharp intake of breath, when we can't think of another way to capture the sight of shocking beauty or destruction, of a sudden unbidden insight or an unexpected flash of grace. "Wow" means we are not dulled to wonder. We click into being fully present when we're stunned into that gasp, by the sight of a birth, or images of the World Trade Center towers falling, or the experience of being in a fjord (a long, narrow inlet with steep cliffs), at dawn for the first time. "Wow" is about having one's mind blown by the mesmerizing or the miraculous: the veins in a leaf, birdsong; volcanoes. When all is said and done, spring is the main reason for Wow. Spring is crazy, being all hope and beauty and glory. She is the resurrection. As a tiny little control freak, I want to understand the power of Wow, so I can organize and control it, and up its rate and frequency. But I can't. I can only feel it, and acknowledge that it is here once again. Wow.

Catherine, our president, welcomes our guest, who just happens to share the same-sounding name. The visiting Kathryn tells us that she works at the Kentucky Derby Museum and wants to improve her public speaking skills. Peace Speakers are more than eager to help her achieve this goal!

Our president also follows decorum and invites Peace Speakers to vote in three new members to our club: Jewel, Linda and George. With an enthusiastic vote, all three are officially welcomed into our Toastmasters club as new members. All with gifts differing, we look forward to the talents they'll share and helping them build their skills in leadership and communication.

BE AWARE: Peace Speakers will not meet on Wednesday, Nov. 4! Instead, our regularly held meeting will take place on Thursday, Nov. 5 during the Open House at the Presbyterian Center. More to come on the time of this meeting and the roles we'll need to fill for it.

Megan, VP of Education, announces that several "meet-ups" outside of our club meetings have been fun. She's welcoming suggestions for places and times for the next ones. She's also seeking someone to organize the next meet-up because she's getting married the first week in November and is understandably overwhelmed.

Please contact Megan if you can orchestrate the next "meet-up" for our members to enjoy some casual coffee/tea time together (or maybe some other enjoyable event!

Lynn, our Joke Master for the day, shares the following yarn:

An old man went to the doctor complaining that his wife could barely hear. The doctor suggested a test to find out the

extent of the problem: “Stand far behind her and ask her a question, and then slowly move up and see how far away you are when she first responds.” The old man excited to finally be working on a solution for the problem, runs home and sees his wife preparing supper. Standing about 20 feet behind her, the man asks, "Honey, what's for supper?” After receiving no response he tried it again 15 feet away, and again no response. Then again at 10 feet away and again no response. Finally he was 5 feet away “Honey, what's for supper?” She replies, “For the fourth time, it’s lasagna!!!!”

Jewel, a new member who volunteered to be our next Toastmaster even before she was officially a member, steps up to the podium with confidence. As the Toastmaster, she prepared an agenda (a colorful and creative one at that) and leads the educational part of our meeting.

Now it's time for our prepared speaker of the day. Jewel introduces Ada, who is working from the Advanced Manual on Project #4, Speaking to Inform. Her speech is titled "Neocortex, Limbic or Cerebellulm; Creating Balance."

Ada, our prepared speaker

Do you know 77% of our thoughts are negative? Do you know our brain has three zones?

The purpose for my speech is to share some recent information that was helpful to me when I recently attended a Career Track Seminar and learned about my brain. It got my attention to the point that I have continued to research by way of the Internet to understand the functions of my brain. It is intriguing, so I will share about the zones of the brain, give some smart heart elements and close with food for thought.

Zones of our brains -

Neocortex zone - creation zone

· Center of our learning and thinking

· Distinguishes us from animals

Limbic/Midbrain - action zone

· Chemicals help create emotions, like the flight or fight emotion

·       Feelings of the heart take place here

Cerebellum – habit zone

·       Once learned, we do things automatically/unconsciously), like driving an auto or typing

·       Who we are naturally?

Did you know we can retrain our brain? Start by observing your thoughts for just two weeks without analyzing them. You will be amazed!! As I mentioned earlier, 77% of our thoughts are negative, and that is not good, so don’t listen to that little voice. It is not your friend!! Practice rejecting those negative thoughts. Clean out your mind clutter on a regular basis with a mind sweep. Make it a habit to write everything down versus carrying it in your mind.

A good rule is - if you think it – ink it.

There is a way to create balance in our daily life. It starts with the heart and it involves being smart. Let’s take each letter and find out how to find that balance. These relate to whatever you do on a daily basis:

Heart Smart

H – Have a why to what you are doing

E – Exciting and challenging should be at your core

A – Being adjustable and adaptable is an asset

R – Related to value - your beliefs and convictions that drive and direct your behavior

T – True - be true to yourself

Smart

S – Specific – as being specific will trim off dead weight

M – Measurable should be whatever you are trying to do

A – Attainable what you are trying to do

R – Relevant; realistic

T – Timely – everything will fall into place

Food for thought: 1)    One of the reasons we don’t accomplish our life goals is that we are wired for failure, but it is the small action steps we take everyday that move us forward.

2)     If we aim for nothing, we will hit it every time – Chuck Blakeman

3)     The greatest habit we can ever break is the habit of being ourselves - Dr. Joe Dispenza

In my speech I have shared about the zones of our brain, the heart smart way to bring balance and concluded with food for thought to give simple insight on how to bring balance into our lives. Once that the mind and heart line up, we are on our way to living a life full of balance.

Ada concluded her speech with a call for questions, and three rolled in, which she handled with grace. I think many in the audience were surprised to learn about the relentless negativity of our minds, but having said that, we can all be more mindful of our thoughts and shift them. We have a brain. Let's use it productively!!!!!

Time for a session of Table Topics - a spontaneous experience that allows participants to think on their feet and speak with no time to prepare. George, our Table Topicsmaster, threw out prompts orally and called upon us to answer. (Okay, I admit I'm used to reading my question several times quickly before I answer it, so I was caught off guard a bit. It forced us to be an active listeners!)

George gave me the first prompt, and because I forgot to have someone take my pic, here's one I did in the back yard after I got home this evening:

You are in the lead role of an epic blockbuster movie about a famous historic figure. Who would you play and why? Who would you choose to be your co-stars?

Kay shares that what comes to mind immediately is the movie Schindler's List. She would want the male role of Schindler, the owner of the German factory who protected and saved the lives of hundreds of Jews working for him during the Holocaust. She chose this role because of the humanitarian actions that Schindler took. Not recalling names of actors besides the lead, Liam Neeson, she's not sure who she'd choose as co-stars.

If you could choose to be a newscaster/anchor, sportscaster or meteorologist, which would you choose and why?

Having a background as a news reporter, Perry said he'd like to be on TV as a newscaster. He actually previously investigated an official to see if she was really in his district. He would hope that his experience writing about the news and being a Toastmaster would help him transition easily to the job of an investigative reporter.

You are the new Larry King, suspenders and all! If you could interview a person from the past, present or the future, who would you pick and why? How would you frame your questions?

Obviously reflecting thoughtfully, Denise shares that she would like to interview Joan of Arc. She's intrigued by what's she's heard about her and what she said. She knows that Joan of Arc posed as a man and acted on behalf of Christ and God. She would have many questions for Joan of Arc because she doesn't know enough about her.

Would you prefer to be in a TV program as a defense lawyer (Perry Mason), a doctor (Marcus Welby), a police detective (Starsky & Hutch), a bus driver (Ralph Kramden), or an ad agency (Madmen)? Which occupation would you pick and why?

Megan really likes Grey's Anatomy, but she's right-brained, so that's not her at all. She might choose Madmen because she wouldn't mind drinking bourbon all day long on the couch and having all kinds of love triangles. However, she might be depressed as an alcoholic, so she thinks she'll just stick with her own life and live vicariously.

Is there any commercial that makes you upset enough that you would refuse to buy their product or service? Explain.

This gets Kristi waving her arms and speaking definitively. She absolutely hates the KIA car commercials. She can't stand his voice and the way he hollers. She insists, "Don't yell - just tell me." Kristi vows that she'll never buy a KIA, even though she does like riding in her friend's KIA car. However, those commercials make her feel grouchy and negative, and she turns into a pumpkin. (Not really, but she added this because pumpkin is the Word of the Day).

If you were the host of a game show, would it be pure chance/luck, trivia, or various contests? What themes and features would you game show have? Explain.

First of all, Megan, who is behind our guest, Kathryn, hasn't turned her back on her while she speaks. I couldn't get her picture until after the meeting.

Kathryn says that her parents are from a large family of 7 kids. Her uncle used to pretend to be a game show host and they'd play Family Feud. If she was the host of a show now, though, she'd choose Wheel of Fortune. It's a game of chance, but you do have to have a little knowledge to win.

George, Table Topicsmaster

These were interesting questions presented by George, and it's always fun to hear answers from individuals. Members reflect on the impromptu Table Topics speeches they heard and which one they liked the most. A paper vote is taken.

And the winner of Table Topics is Kristi! It seems that her demonstrative stance and clearly spoken loathing about KIA commercials garnered the most attention from listeners. Enjoy that trophy until we meet again, Kristi!

Ada's evaluator for the speech she gave today is Eric. He surveys the advanced manual, which outlines the components essential for Ada's speech. He shares that he didn't notice her depending too much on her notes. He found the facts she shared to be helpful and interesting. He also liked the premise and found her speech to be logically presented and well-organized. He notes that she handled the questions well that were posed at the end and that she seemed to enjoy answering them. One suggestion he offers is being able to see the acronym of SMART HEART visually to help listeners absorb more information.

Jewel returns to the podium to conclude the educational part of our meeting. She admits loving the smell of pumpkin pie, so she brought some pumpkin muffins to share with everyone today. Thanks, Jewel!!!!

Catherine, our president, closes our Peace Speakers meeting reminding us to go out and be WOWed by the beauty and presence of the world in which we live. Let us resist the tendency to think negative thoughts (ones that Ada warned us about) and focus our minds on what's good and on what we can make better!

Speaking of making things better, consider joining us at one or more of our Toastmasters meetings. If you're a visitor to this blog and you're curious, join us for some fun and growth. You have only some bad habits (perhaps) to lose!

OUR NEXT FEW 2015 MEETINGS:

Wed., Oct. 21 - Conference Room B

Thur., Nov. 5- Room & Time TBA
(Special Open House Toastmasters Meeting)