TM Suneeta Pathak as our energetic Toastmaster of the Evening
The moment, TM Suneeta Pathak received the floor from TM Dalton Lim (Acting Sergeant-At-Ams), she rallied for a thunderous applause to kick-start the evening followed by a question, “Are you feeling lethargic or energetic tonight?”. Right off the bat she called out for introductions from the office bearers.
Grammarian – TM Awfa Nawawi
Word of the Day – Superfluous
An adjective for unnecessary, especially through being more than enough.
Language focus – Allusion
An expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passing reference.
Band of Role Players
Timer & Tip – TM A.Faiz Zailani
Tip of the day: To focus on the task at hand because the present is the most important, as it determines the outcome in the future.
In Suneeta’s thought of the day, she highlighted that we should know when and how to help others so that he or she won’t be too dependent. In a way, it would nurture a person to be independent.
Speakers for the evening. (L to R) TM Kelvin Lai, TM Haryati Gafur and Stuart Lee, ACS, ALB
“A single praise is like a drop of honey in changing a person’s life and even diffusing a human time bomb” was the line TM Kelvin Lai used to eloquently open his CC2 speech. He went on to describe his explosive student name Brock, who would get into fights without regard to those around him. During class, Brock would run out or sleep as Kelvin was at a lost on what to do with him – until Brock started hurling inappropriate remarks in class. As a role model, Kelvin decided not to react negatively but instead, started praising his language use and discouraged the use of profanity. This went on until Brock ceased disrupting the class. Kelvin closed the speech with, “A sincere praise is a like a drop of honey – it’s sweet to the ears, a pleasure to take in and truly warms hearts. It can soften the hardest of head. So drop honey instead of bombs”.
School of Evaluators
TM Haryati Gafur traversed us back in time to her childhood in the rural village. She brought these decade-old memories out of the pages and into our minds with vivid imageries of the weather, the taste of simple bread-and-butter breakfast and the sounds of lively farm animals. Before leaving for work, her mother was always worried that the children will ask to watch the television, but Haryati assured her that they wouldn’t. Although her mother doubted it, Haryati and her siblings truly did not request for the television as they had many means to entertain themselves with. Haryati’s memories were brought to life with her reliving stories of sliding around the farm with large leaves as carriers and her beloved grandfather as the chauffeur. With that, she showed us that we do not need the fancier things in life to feel happy.
Stuart Lee, ACS, ALB, entertained the audience with a project from the humorous manual entitled “In Your Head”. He brought us together on his journey on losing weight while sharing several tips. The first tip was simply to get started. After excuses upon excuses such as not having the right shoes or the right weather or even the right timing, Stuart still could not bring himself to take the first step. But after a very intense dialogue between his bed coaxing him to sleep and his new shoes guilt-tripping him to not leave the newly bought pair, he finally set off. Secondly, he encouraged us to set limits; knowing what limits are and pushing them will lead us to improving ourselves step by step. Finally, he encouraged us to not compare ourselves with others because that makes us bitter but to instead compare only with ourselves as that will make us better. He made a clean finish by encouraging the audience to “Just do it!”.
Topicsmater and Impromptu speakers
Table Topics
DTM Shawn Narcis spoke about his love for durians, especially the emperor of the king of fruits, the Musang King. Wherever he travels, he would search for this succulent fruit and compare it with the others. He let on humorously that it is very beneficial to let people know what you like and that is important to pursue them. Forget about figures, enjoying what you like is the way of life.
CL Jordan Yau was invited to speak about his collection of Gundam – robot figurines. There are many different types of Gundam ranging from the basic figurines to the highly complicated and intricate robots. To others, these toys might be a passing hobby, but to Jordan, it has a special place in his heart as it is not only a favourite pastime but also a part of himself.
TM Theressa Yin shared about her internship at the Jerudong Park Medical Centre (JPMC) Neuroscience & Stroke Rehabilitation Centre. It was a truly life changing experience as she was in the ICU unit where she witnessed lives saved as well as lives lost. She could listen to a patient talk for weeks or only once and never again. As the age range of people having strokes begins to widen, Theressa reminds us to not take lives for granted and to take care of our body while we can.
Hazwan Kamarulzaman, ACB, ALB as General Evaluator
Syahmi was given the baton from Stuart’s speech and spoke about running as a healthy sport. He advises to start slow, with small goals eventually growing into bigger ones as time passes. Although it is not easy and we might suffer a little, these are not consequences of being tired but of hardwork, triumph and victory.
Our last speaker Amran Jamaluddin, CC spoke about the excitement about owning his very own car. He joked that although the first car he used belonged to his brother, it was also nice because hitting anything does not hurt as much when the car was not his own. However, possessing your own car is truly the best as you are able to go anywhere you want.
Ribbon winners
All in all, it was a fantabulous night of learning with laughter as we were in the shoes of speakers as they spoke of their experiences. Till then, see you next week.
Written by;
Gerald Goh, CL/Derby Teo, CC
Photography by;
Rano Iskandar, CC, CL