Page 24 - voices-2023-05

PLUGGED IN
Come What May
“It’s hard to believe, but the contest season is
officially over for 2023!” In October I told my
mentor, Leela Seeber, that competing in both the
International and Humorous Speech Contests was
my plan for the year. I admit, it was ambitious
to do both. I had never attempted two different
speech contests at the same time, but it seemed
like a good challenge.
Then a personal tragedy occurred in late
November and my broken heart didn’t feel like
competing. I wasn’t even sure I could. I wasn’t in
a humorous or inspiring mood. But I had already
promised and something inside urged me to push
through. In December, I competed alongside
seasoned Toastmasters: Bill Maher, Joe Harper,
and Cleon Cox. Just getting through both contests
was my goal at the time. I relied on my passion for
Toastmasters to keep me going. It did and I found
myself moving on to February’s Area 63 contest.
Between contests I visited several Toastmasters
clubs, and the different audiences gave me lots of
helpful feedback and perspective. I practiced and
refined my speeches to strengthen my message
and enhance my delivery. This additional
practice helped me to win again in February as I
would move on to the Division E contest in both
24 ONE COMMUNITY
Jennifer Schmidt, EH2
categories. This was always a possibility since I was
competing in both contests, but when it happened,
I was truly grateful for the opportunity to present
both speeches at the Division level.
This was also the last Division contest which
was held at the end of April. Until that contest
arrived I had over two months to practice, edit,
and practice more. I even added a prop for the
Division contest based on the feedback I received.
This was something I have never done before,
but admittedly, the risk of using a prop made my
humorous speech even more fun.
I won 1st in the Humorous and 2nd in the
International Speech Contests, I was both shocked
and thrilled. This was the best I had ever done.
It meant I would compete in the District Contest
for the first time. Considering my hesitation in
December, it surprised me more than anyone that
I made it this far.
My victory was even sweeter because I took
a chance when it was hard. I could have chosen
not to try, and everyone would have understood
– except me. That inner nudge (or push) that I
have, is persistent and usually refuses to take “no”
for an answer.
One thing was true. I certainly got the challenge