In a room full of people, waiting eagerly to hear what Bob was about to deliver, a microphone went falling down as his shivering hands could not hold it anymore due to the pressure in his belly and the agony of stage fright taking hold of him.
He felt as if his heart-beat was the only sound that could be heard in the room. Breathing suddenly became a difficult task.Bob had to lay back on the pulpit for balance. As he tried to focus on his script in front of him, he could hardly make meaning out of the letters that seemed to be also mocking him in return as if anxiety and regret were not giving him a hard time already.
It was a hectic day for Bob, as his typical final school days would always be. He enjoyed the last school days of every term but this was not the usual ‘hectic’ knowing he had been tasked to present a poem by his literature teacher towards the end of the term. Public speaking, always been a challenge to him and this day was not any better. As the microphone kissed the ground,, his body got tense and obviously all eyes fell on him. To say he was horrified would be an understatement. He asked the gods of the earth to swallow him whole and save him from this torturous moment of his life, and as he anticipated the gods did not take heed to his requests. All Bob needed was to be rescued… The whole room just went quiet, waiting for him to make a move.
Sweat dripped from his forehead. In the midst of his chaos ,a determined loud clap came from the crowd. At first it startled the eighteen year old and two more people joined in unison, until almost half of the room was clapping as well. A familiar voice called “ You can do it Bob!!!” Bob had no idea who that was but the responses he was getting from the audience woke him from the horrific experience and he could feel his body again.
He shrugged his shoulders, looked at his script and all memories of sleepless nights rehearsing came flashing back. “ I CAN DO IT!” He reassured himself and that gave him the energy to pick his microphone, cleared his throat and started his speech.
It started with stuttering but slowly Bob gained his confidence back. Now the whole audience saw what Mrs Jones, his literature teacher always saw in him. Behind a noisy and Stubborn kid was a soft thespian who had so much to offer to the world. The next moment a round of applause was coming from every corner of the room and there… He did it!!!
This was just but the beginning towards his greatness. If we were to tell him that exactly three months from this day , he was going to win the most prestigious public speaking scholarship offered in his province would he believe it?
Well let’s leave it to him to find out that the flexible,social and confident young man he always imagined would come to life right under his watch.
17 January, 2023
