A Reader in Summer, A Traveler in Winter

"The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go."-- Dr. Seuss

I must do something. Today is the last day of August. It's sunny in the afternoon. I put on the bikinis, dived in the river, splashed the water in the air, wetted my Toastmaster Magazine on the bank, a perfect ending to summer 2007.

Autumn is coming. I must focus more on reading in Japanese to get myself ready as a traveler in the "Land of the Rising Sun". I know it won't help much linguistically in such a short period of time for my upcoming winter journey in Hokkaido, but better than no preparation at all.

I've been studying PHP magazines for the past three consecutive years. Twice a month I meet with senior citizens for two hours and half to study the articles in most-recent magazines. In fact, that's how I came up the idea of studying Toastmasters magazine with golden ladies clogging Toastmasters six months ago.

Reading in Japanese produces writing in Japanese, which I should try in due time, like what I'm doing on this blog, documenting the minutes of Toastmaster magazines reading gatherings.

I've read quite a few good Japanese novels translated in Chinese. Take Yasunari Kawabata's Snow Country, the Nobel Prize of Literature in 1968, for example, I read it, and I forgot it. I live in Taiwan. I don't know what it is like in a snow country. If I could live in Hokkaido for a month, walk on the slippery streets, rush to find shelter in a coffeehouse in the afternoon, I should be able to perceive the story better, the names of towns and people will stay longer, even the favors of local delicacies linger.

Theodor Seuss Geisel prompts my travelling genes, to see the world, to stimulate the senses, to develop the emotions, to nurture feelings, and to read and write in Japanese. If every act of writing is an act of reading, an act of traveling, I'd be delighted to give an interpretation of some part of what it is, in Japanese. Sherry

Save up for a Rainy Day

I'd like to express my appreciation for "Communicating Across Culture", Toastmaster Magazine October issue 2005. It seemed to me that it was written for me. I felt a lot of sympathy with the remarks of Mr.Lee.

I sometimes go to China to install or modify machines as an electrical engineer. I write the meeting minutes, discuss with the staff at the end of the visit. I have an interpreter who translates into Chinese from Japanese for me. I sometimes receive the same questions again and again. So I wonder how much my customers and the interpreter understand what I say. I later realize that the interpreter can not explain technical terms well enough for attendees to understand me.

So I hand notes to the interpreter in advance at my last visit. And I explain to them in details with visual aids, including technical terms to the interpreter. It works very well. My trustworthy interpreter brings me a great success for my business.

The article of Mr.Lee is full of tips I still haven't practiced yet for my business. I shall apply them on my next trip to Thailand in November.
By Misao Inuzuka, Nagoya Toastmasters Club

Remarks from Sherry: Misao wrote to LETTERS of Toastmaster Magazine, but didn't get accepted two years ago. So I invite Misao to share his letter on the blog. I should follow Misao's steps to send a letter to the Toastmaster Magazine.

Toastmaster Magazine Reading Gathering in August

Despite all the thoughtful arrangement, exciting preparation, and long expectation, our reading gathering in August was called off by the bluffing typhoon; not small enough for us to stick to our plan and go out, but big enough to make our family worried. In stead of enjoying a hot summer concert on the beach, we seven golden ladies were forced to stay home and do the homework sharing our perception of the articles we were supposed to read for our gathering.

Like Sherry, typhoon days meant fun for me when little. My tiny head could never understand the damage, the catastrophe brought up by typhoons. I longed for typhoon to come so that I could breathe the clean and fresh air, feel the cool and clear water with my feet, and enjoy the exotic beauty in nature. Nothing could drive the dull and lifeless routine away so well like typhoons did. How wonderful it is to be naïve and carefree!

The cancellation of our gathering didn't stop Sherry and me. We managed to chat for an hour at Café 85°C right before serving the judges at Innovative Toastmasters Club's in-house humorous and evaluation contests Tuesday, the 21st of August. We talked about how to promote Toastmasters on the radio and TV. We talked about how to enable Toastmasters to apply their communication and leadership skills with the mass media. It'll be awesome and challenging for us to take the lead, yet my concern is,

1. Taiwan is a highly populated country. On such a small island, there are over 100 TV channels and over 100 radio stations. How big is the chance that the audience will switch to the station we are on? How big is the chance that the program will get across to a possible interested audience?

2. If we want to promote Toastmasters on the radio or TV, disregarding the outcome, what radio stations shall we approach besides ICRT (International Community Radio Taipei)? ICRT has done several interviews with Toastmasters, how often will they be willing to support us?

3. Who are the ideal representatives of Toastmasters to be interviewed on the radio and TV?

4. Who should be responsible or in charge of planning and promoting live interviews on the radio or TV?

Even though I can't carry a big expectation of an interview on the radio or TV, I shall prepare it to the best of my ability and enjoy the process with an ardent hope to inspire the audience. If time allows, I hope I'll come up with an imaginary interview in time later.

While we were reading, Sean came sit at the next table at Café 85°C. It was unbelievable to see a familiar, long-time-no-see young face. Sean, the eldest son of Athena Lien, DTM, District 67 Governor 2003-2004, took a few photos of Sherry and me, and called his mother to inform her of our short encounter. What a small world! Trini

Vikas Jhingran, WCPS 2007

While Typhoon Sepat was sweeping Taiwan hard this past weekend, the World Champion of Public Speaking (WCPS) 2007 was born--Mr. Vikas Jhingran who competed onstage Saturday, the 18th of August, at the 76th Annual Convention of Toastmasters International in Phoenix, Arizona.

Luckily I received a surprising email from Ryan Levesque this morning, informing me of the great news, as follows,

Hello Sherry Li,

I just came across your blog. Thought you might be interested in my blog for my new podcast Talking Toastmasters Padcast!

We interviewed Vikas Jhingran last week and he won the World Championship of Public Speaking in Phoenix this past weekend. (Unfortunately, the audio quality of that particular episode was not too great--but Vikas was excellent!)

Check it out, and feel free to put a link to it on your blog, if you think your readers would enjoy it. Good luck with your Toastmasters career!

Sincerely,
Ryan Levesque, Massachusetts
Co-Host, Talking Toastmasters Podcast

No sooner than later, I listened to "Interview with Vikas Jhingran" on Talking Toastmasters, I am happy that members in the big extended Toastmaters family can be reached out in a click. It feels great to be able to listen to Toastmasters on the other side of the wolrd.

From now on, in addition to our monthly reading gathering, we can actually listen to the interviews of authors of Toastmaster Magazine on Talking Toastmasters Padcast! Let's hear what Dee Dees, DTM, has to say about Looking for Speech Ideas? Look at Your Life! in Toastmaster Magazine July issue.

Our voice is our identity. I just can't wait to get to know more Toastmasters around the globe by tuning to Talking Toastmasters! Join me, would you?

Thank you, Ryan, and Congratulations, Vikas!
Sherry

A Freshwater Fish--Sepat

Typhoon Sepat is roaring over the Pacific Ocean with sustained winds of 184 kilometers and gusts of 227 kilometers. Accordling to Central Weather Bureau, it'll be the strongest storm to threaten Taiwan this year. Many authorities announced the cancel of weekend activities, so was the Share the Spirit Concert postponed till next weekend.

But, what is Sepat, the name of the super typhoon? As of 1 January 2000, tropical cyclones in the Northwest Pacific basin are now being named from a new and very different list of names. The new names are Asian names and were contributed by all the nations and territories that are members of the WMO's Typhoon Committee. The names by and large are not personal names. There are a few men's and women's names, but the majority are names of flowers, animals, birds, trees, or even foods, etc, while some are descriptive adjectives. Sepat is a Malaysian word for a freshwater fish.

As Sepat is picking up energy as it moves over the ocean and turn into a super typhoon, a storm can wash out everything not made of cement or steel with that wind. Golden ladies Toastmasters might be forced to cancel our reading gathering in August as well. I'm still praying for the possibility to have our monthly gathering in Taipei on schedule, no matter how bad the typhoon could hit Taiwan.

No doubt, the power of nature is immense. All scheduled activities must be either postponed or cancelled. Of course, some lucky people can still carry out their activities as planned at home. Less fortunate people must fight hard with the natural disasters to protect their sweet homes.

When I was a child, I simply loved Typhoon holidays. No school, no homework, plenty of free time to play with friends in the neighborhood. Today, I still like typhoon days in a unique way, I could feel the strong wind blowing the windows. I love to walk in the rain to feel the rain drop hard on the umbrella.

I never miss the chance to ride my bike on the streets after a typhoon, to see the falling signs on the streets. Some trees fall down. Some trunks are broken into half. The road is messy with garbages everywhere. But there is a tranquility in the air after the tempest. In no time, everything will return to normal routine-hustle and bustle again. Doesn't it remind you of the unexpected romantic love, somehow? No matter how strong the intensity might be, it will subside eventually.

I always believe a word has a meaning in itself. Just imagine how a freshwater fish is going to sweep Taiwan this weekend. I'm curious about the passions and emotions of Sepat. I look forward to its power to transform me into a playful mermaid! Sherry

Smile Taiwan--319 Towns

What does 319 have to do with Smile Taiwan? I didn't know what 319 meant until I signed up the Smile Taiwan--Spare the Spirit Beach Concert in Fulong Saturday, the 18th of August. I thought 319 meant March the 19th, but it meant 319 towns in Taiwan.

"Make Taiwan Beautiful" movement was initiated by the CommonWealth Magazine in 2001 to encourage people to return and rebuild 319 hometowns. In 2005, CommonWealth Magazine cooperated with 2000 shops to form "Smile Alliance" to welcome people to visit 319 towns with a Smile Taiwan Passport. In the past six years, more than one thousand people have completed their visit of 319 towns.

Golden ladies Toastmasters will not be absent to take part in the "Make Taiwan beautiful" movement. We shall get our Smile Taiwan passports in Fulong, the first stop of our visit of 319 towns in the years to come. We will bring Toastmaster magazines with us to meet with people. Just imagine, if there is a Toastmaster magazine reading group in each town, there will be 319 potential Toastmasters clubs on this beautiful island. Taiwan will be full of Smiling Toastmasters!

Of course, there is no way for golden ladies to bring smile to 319 towns, but we can mobilize our fellow members in the existing 100 Toastmasters clubs to help. If one Toastmaster club can visit a town every four months, District 67 should be able to cover 319 towns in a year. Together we can spread the good news about the Toastmasters International, the biggest non-profit educational organization in the world. Together we can help 319 towns build a friendly and supportive learning environment for local residents as well as smiling visitors.

We have a reason to smile, when 319 towns in Taiwan are friendly, clean, of taste, and of characters. We have a reason to smile, when 319 towns provide Toastmasters arena for people to practice communication and leadership skills. We have a reason to smile, when Taiwan becomes a beautiful island--Formosa for all. Sherry

Talking Up Toastmasters on the Radio

"Good afternoon. It's five o'clock and you're tuned to 'Smile Taiwan,' the program that keeps you informed of events and goings-on the beautiful island-Formosa. I'm your host, David Cruise, at Share the Spirit Concert Live in Fulong. With me are seven beautiful and MATURED golden ladies from Toastmasters...”

Q: Firstly, welcome you all to 'Smile Taiwan,' you speak English well and you look sexy and healthy, share with us your secrets.

A: We are the seven beauties in Toastmasters, Irene Chen, Trini Ding, Kate Hsu, Sherry Li, Lydia Lin, Michelle Liu, Linda Tseng. We belong to different Toastmasters clubs. We practice public speaking in English twice a month in our clubs. We learn clogging dance once a week. We are happy with our lives.

Q: Public speaking? That's awesome. When I was a child, I was scared of public speaking. Why do you find public speaking interesting?

Irene: I hated public speaking from the bottom of my heart when young. But, I love to learn the communication skills in a friendly and supportive environment. I found Formosa Toastmasters Club six years ago, and I fell in love with her at the first sight. Now I have more confidence to talk about interesting topics in front of people.

Q: Toastmasters? Sounds like a group of masters making a toast?
Trini: In stead of making a toast in the kitchen, we give a toast at a party, like a master of a ceremony. We learn to tell jokes, give impromptu and prepared speeches in our club. I am from China Toastmasters Club.

Q: Is English a common language in Toastmasters?
Kate: There are more than 100 Toastmasters clubs in Taiwan, the majority are English speaking clubs. I have a dual membership. I am a member of Prestige Toastmasters Club, I also belong to a Taiwanese speaking Toastmasters Club. In Taiwan, there are clubs in English, Mandarin, Taiwanese, Hakka, Japanese, Spanish and German.

Q: I am impressed with your language skills. How do you learn so many languages?
Sherry: Use it or lose it. It is about the skills we acquire in life, except our mother tongue. I find Toastmasters the best place to brush up our language skills. I am happy I helped charter Peace Toastmaster club in Taipei eight years ago. I've made a lot of senior friends who speak Japanese like their native language.

Q: You call yourselves golden ladies, why?
Michelle: We are middle-aged women alright, but we don't set limits for ourselves. We enjoy our days and nights with love and energy. We would like to share our happiness with family and friends. That's why we are golden. Golden ladies will not be golden forever, pretty soon we'll advance to diamond ladies. Diamond is a girl's best friend, regardless of the age.

Q: Why to Share the Spirit Concert? Don't you like a quieter place to practice English speaking skills?
Lydia: Anyplace is a great place to learn communication skills. In fact, I love to shop at a busy and noisy traditional market, where I can apply the communication and leadership skills I learn in Toastmasters to the best of my ability. And I am proud of my bargaining skills. That's the reason I like a hot concert on the beach in August to quench the heat. It feels cool to learn something new everyday!

Q: I see you all wear a pair of iron shoes. Why?
Linda: They are the clogging shoes. We enjoy performing clogging dance together. If you want to know more about the dance, please tune to TBVS to see our show at 8 o'clock. In Toastmasters, we learn to take care of our soul. In clogging, we learn to take care of our body.

David: Thank you so much, Pretty and Sexy golden ladies clogging Toastmasters to 'Smile Taiwan'. Wish you a great time at Share the Spirit concert. Dear listeners, do you want to speak English fluently? do you want to make friends? do you want to look pretty and sexy? Find a Toastmasters club near you. For more information about Toastmasters, please go check the website www.toastmasters.org.tw. Thank you for tuning to 'Smile Taiwan', see you next week, wear a sweet smile! Sherry

Share the Spirit--Smile Taiwan

After the Wedding Toast in June, are you ready to take the Jumbo Jet to the beach for the honeymoon? How I love the cover of Toastmaster magazine each month! Not only do golden ladies read the monthly, but they also have the ideas for dress code and reading venue to echo the cover to the wildest imagination. The reading gathering in August will take place on the beach in Fulong next Saturday, the 18th of August. We're loving it!

We'll take 15:48 train from Taipei to Fulong, discuss three articles on the train for an hour, arrive at Fulong at 16:52. Share the Sprit Concert starts from 17:30 and ends at 20:00. We'll take 21:49 train back to Taipei. Golden ladies Toastmasters are going to make new records for ourselves as well as toastmasters in District 67 (Taiwan). Hopefully, our move will lay a good foundation for others to follow in the future.

Nothing can deter golden ladies Toastmasters from exploring new possibilities in life. It is the first time for seven golden ladies to get together to a summer concert on the beach to mingle with a crowd at night. No doubt, it'll be jam-packed. In fact, the more chock-a-block, the better for us to promote Toastmasters.

Golden ladies know how to make the good use of transportation time. We'll have the reading and discuss on the train roundtrip. Just imagine we have the same Toastmaster magazines in hands, talking and laughing in English. The scene is full of curiousness itself. On top of an enjoyable reading, I'm sure we will covert a few passengers on the train to future Toastmasters.

Golden ladies will bring the clogging shoes along to the concert. During the intermission, I intend to apply the communication and leadership skills I learn from Toastmasters to approach the concert organizer to seek for a chance to perform a couple of clogging dances on stage. I'll be in bikinis to prove golden ladies are as pretty and sexy as young gals.

In Toastmaster Magazine July issue, it is about the talking on the radio and meeting on TV. What can be a better place to promote Toastmasters than "Share the Sprit" Concert. We can expose ourselves to thousands of people on the beach, we can promote Toastmasters to news reporters of the concert.

Why worry about if the beach concert will be crowded? Why worry about if we don't have opportunities to promote Toastmasters to the mass media? As long as we are prepared and eager to share with others our passions and enthusiasm about Toastmasters, chances are in our hands everywhere and anywhere. Golden ladies will make history for themselves, for middle-aged women, and for the Toastmasters International. Sherry