Don Quixote & Sancho Panza

I did not only read Toastmaster Magazine February 2009 from cover to cover, but I also internalized the whole magazine as if I would be given a chance to lecture on each article at the most prestigious university in Taiwan.

Every month I look forward to receiving the toastmaster magazine in my mail box. Everytime, I open the magazine, I feel much inspired by the authors. It is like that the magazine is edited and pusblished for my eyes and it arrives at my desk just-in-time. What a serendipity it is!

Take the February issue for example, after reading "Give the Gift of Listening" by Patrick Mott and "Leading by a Tale" by Caren Neile, I rewrote my prepared speech for the upcoming Area H1 Speech Contest. My speech is about the story of the impossible dream of Don Quixote. I'm thinking twice how to create more indelible images in the hearts and minds of the audience and how to do it better.

Don Quixote & Sancho Panza ~~to tell a story with visual aids~~ 5-7 minutes

Act I (0'0"-2'30") Opening
Slide 1 (30 seconds), once upon a time, 500 years ago, to be exact, there lived Don Quixote in a small village in Spain. He was a retired country gentleman in his fifties. ** He became obsessed with books of chivalric romance, and decided to become a knight. Everybody in the world now, young or old, knows the story about the fight between Don Quixote and the windmill.

Slide 2 (30 seconds), many young and pretty girls have a dream, to become a supermodel. I'm in my 50's, 55 to be exact. **I became obsessed with books of fashion after I became a full-time housewife. I believe I can also become a supermodel, despite the fact that it is to many a dream clearly impossible. Young, me? No more! Pretty, me? Not really, in the eyes of the beholders!

Slide 3 (30 seconds), ** Don Quixote was lucky to have a good neighbor Sancho Panza as his friend who stood by him and gave him the courage and confidence to move on with his impossible dream *** to fight the foe, to protect the weak.

Theme music on, "The Impossible Dream From Man of LaMancha", Lyrics by Joe Darionde

Slide 4 (30 seconds), sing with action, "to dream the impossible dream; to fight the unbeatable foe; **to bear with unbearable sorrow; to reach the unreachable star!"

Act II (2'30"-5'30") Body
Slide 5 (one minute), **I was lucky to have a good toastmaster member Sophia Chen to give me the courage and confidence to dream as a supermodel. Last March Sophia Chen joined Grand Toastmasters Club as a new member. She was a well-known makeup artist in the fashion field. When I told Sophia about my supermodel dream, she looked at me with a smile. "Yes, Sherry you can make it. You shine and beam like a supermodel."

Slide 6 (one minute), Last Christmas, Sophia invited me to be her model for her designer's hats for United Daily News. I was so thrilled that I wore a facial mask overnight on Christmas Eve, hoping I would look 20 year younger on Christmas morning. But the moment the editor-in-chief saw me, she ruthlessly challenged Sophia about bringing a housewife to ruin her editor's career. She needed a supermodel, not a supermother from the supermarket. But I didn't want to give up and Sophia made magic. **The supermother was on the newspapers with Sophia's hats, covering one quarter of the full page.

Slide 7 & 8 (one minute), Sophia didn't stop there, she arranged her photographer partner to take **calendar girl photos of me on December 31st, 2008. We carried 20 outfits in 4 huge suitcases to the photo studio. Sophia made me one step closer to a supermodel on the catwalk in Paris.

Act III (5'30"-7'00") Conclusion
Slide 9 (30 seconds), **Actions speak louder than words. *** Now I shall bring the catwalk in Paris to the speech contest venue. Open your eyes to 2009 spring fashion show.

Runway music on, "You're my Flower" by Wubai

Slide 10 (30 seconds), without Sancho Panza, there would not have been Don Quixote. I'm grateful for Sophia Chen for her encouragement and investment in me to help me realize my ** supermodel dream. Do you have Sancho Panza around you? Fellow Toastmasters, look at people around us, let's thank them for supporting us, encouraging us, investing in us and being part of our impossible dreams!

Remarks:
** signs to show the slide.
*** signs to play the music.