Thursday, July 24, 2008

Time is running out

Today is the second to last day of class in the women and leadership course. I can't believe it went by so fast. Today we all had to say good-bye to a fellow classmate because she is leaving tomorrow morning before class to be able to go to cheer camp. Today we all had to practice our speeches in front of the class. I did a lot better than I did the first time I tried it. Also something very fun yet informative that we did today was a self defense class. We were taught the right positions in which we could punch or kick. It was very cool. Tomorrow we will present our speeches in front of parents and other classmates that are not in our class, which adds on a little to our nervousness.
Well we have two more days and half of me is so ready to leave and go home, but the other part of wants to stay back behind to enjoy Rhode Island. Thayer street was awesome with all the wonderful options of food and stores. I know I really enjoyed the water fire show that I saw.Even though its hot and humid out here, I've enjoyed the rain that we have had these past few days. The atmosphere makes me feel comfortable and at home. I like how Brown is not to city like, but if you walk a couple blocks further you get the city with its huge mall, with plenty of stores.
I'm going to miss Brown, but I have to move on. I know I have other work waiting for me at home.

1 comment:

Don Gosney said...

Mercedes⎯Nice to hear from you again.

Although you have pangs about leaving a place you’ve enjoyed and had fun at, I can appreciate your comment about returning home because you have work to do here. I hope this means we can expect you to use your newfound skills. Of course, I’m referring to what you’ve learned about Women in Leadership and not those self-defense skills (that can easily be turned into offensive skills).

We wish you luck with your speech. They used to say that to get over a fear of public speaking you should envision your audience without their clothes on. I’m not sure when that would have calmed me down but when we consider the way some people look these days, I’m afraid that envisioning the audience without their clothes on would scare the bejeesus out of me.

The key to public speaking is to know your material and have confidence in yourself. When you can speak with conviction, even a hostile audience can be yours for the taking⎯and these people aren’t your enemies.