Trio of speeches
A TRIO of excellent speeches was presented to Loughborough Charnwood Speakers Club at the last meeting.
Taking the lead with a speech entitled “Whittling and Carving” James Gibson fooled us all into thinking he was being a rather nervous amateur, shuffling notes with bumbling buffoonery before casting them aside with a flourish and enthusiastically launching into his speech about working with wood.
Reminiscing about his schooldays studying not only Latin and French but also Metalwork and Woodwork instilled in him a fascination with the properties of wood.
He learned about the many types of joints; Butt, Bridle, Biscuit, Tongue and Groove, Mortise and Tenon were some of names that fascinated him.
A seafaring Uncle taught him about whittling small pieces of wood into tiny lighthouses. One day his Uncle surprised him by showing him a Dimple whiskey bottle and said “Come by after school and I will show you something amazing”.
James was delighted to see not only the tiny lighthouse but a fully rigged Man o’ War on a raging sea inside the bottle. The wonderment of how that got into the small neck of the bottle was intriguing and it became a gift he has treasured to this day.
A very well researched speech by Angus Harriman followed. This was a serious speech on a subject which Angus felt strongly about.
In America in just one year there were 33,636 people killed by one cause and that “cause” was Guns! It was the startling opening to his emotive speech on the effects of not having gun laws, as in other countries.
Angus developed his theme by quoting data from various countries such as Australia whose gun fatalities have reduced to almost zero after strict laws were introduced in 1996 followed by the UK in 1997 but ignored by America due to the second amendment in the Constitution which states the right of the people to keep and bear arms.
He made a case for when guns could be of use but asked how seeing them used in action films which are portrayed as thrilling and exciting would affect the young people who watched them.
Urging the USA to adopt gun laws, Angus ended his speech with a strong statement, “Why not give it a shot” he said.
Vince Jupp who joined the club after his first visit presented his initial speech which aims to tell us something about himself. Clearly an accomplished speaker Vince was confident and relaxed as he told us about his quest for minimalism. He explained that we all start life as a minimalist, naked and bare and without possessions.
Along life’s route, we collect more and more. The more we have the more space we need. The more insurance we need to protect what we have in case someone steals it. Aim to reduce possessions is the route to peace and contentment. Time for the important things in life. Time to spend with loved ones.
“Taking the first step to simply be and be simply me is simply great” he concluded.
Well constructed, well performed and left us wishing we had the courage to do the same.
James Davies then introduced the impromptu speaking session where members are given a topic to speak on for three minutes without any preparation. This is often the scariest part of the evening and the only one where a best topic is rewarded with a trophy to hold until the next meeting.
Everyone was invited to dip into a bag and speak about the colour they had chosen from the selection of pencils it contained.
Sue York found herself talking about white which may or may not be called a colour! As a makeup artist to bridal parties and a consultant to cancer sufferers whose hair colour may change after regrowth Sue has plenty of experience and interest in colours and made an interesting case for the use of white and was duly awarded the best topic trophy for the evening.
If you would like to practice speaking to an audience, join us at John Storer House on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month at 7.30pm For more information go to www. loughboroughspeakers.org.uk or find us on Facebook