474th Chapter Meeting or The Four Seasons, The Scariest Place and The Coup

Best Prepared Speech: Toastmaster Johnbosco Ng

Best Evaluator: Kenneth Yeo, ACS, ALB

Best Table Topic: Toastmaster Christina Ho

Word of the Evening: NUANCE

First things first: our Charismatic, Persuasive and Influential “Minister of Influence”, Coen Tan, is now officially a Distinguished Toastmaster! Congratulations to Coen!!

As acting Club President, Ng Kin Foong, CC invited us to stage a “coup of the imagination” (sounds like something from the 1970s Twilight Zone). He had fun, learned how to craft 7 speeches in about 7 weeks, assisted in Speechcraft and learned how to train. “Your real reason may not be it (your real reason)” he said, and added “At the root of it, is the desire for growth”

The first prepared Speech, by Toastmaster Johnbosco Ng (CC P5, Your Body Speaks), was about “The Scariest Place on Earth”! What is this 'scariest place', I hear you ask? It's the South Korea Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ. It is 250 km long and 4 km wide. It was the site of gruesome axe murders, where Captain Bonifas who was ordered to cut down a poplar tree, was ambushed by the North Korean soldiers. Johnbosco's tour guide used one word to snap them out of the grim feeling: “Lunchtime!” Johnbosco did an amazing job describing his mouth-watering lunch (it was green spinach, but he made it sound so delicious) and why he had to wear a helmet in the tunnels. Can you guess why?*

The second prepared speech by Toastmaster Woelly William (CC P1: The Ice Breaker) started off on an amazing note: he said that it was his first Toastmasters speech and we should all give him a big hand to help him overcome his shyness! An accountant by profession, it didn't seem like he was new to public speaking and looks comfortable on stage. He talked about not letting fear 'take over our future' and likes the support and encouragement from Tampines Changkat Toastmasters Club. Coincidentally, he mentioned 'rolling a boulder up a hill', which I was just reading about in Paul Allen's engrossing memoir, “Idea Man”. The legend of King Sisyphus, who had been deceitful and cheated Death twice, was that Zeus made him roll a boulder up a hill, only to have it roll back down again, over and over.

Our charismatic Toastmaster Ronnie Wang (CC P8, 'Get Comfortable with Visual Aids') began his speech entitled “Four Seasons” by repeating a question he is often asked: “Will you be here in Singapore long?” (Ronnie is from China). And his answer? “It depends on whether I miss the four seasons!” After a brief debate about how many seasons there are in Singapore (personally, I think there are only 2: GSS and the 'Saving-up phase'. Right, ladies?), Ronnie showed beautiful images of the four seasons. He also showed us an agricultural perspective: Spring is 'Planting Season', and Autumn is 'Harvest time'. Summer was a time to have fun outdoors ( I remember my first summer in the UK- so many locals sat/sunbathed in the sunlight and I was asking myself: “What's wrong with these people?” It made no sense to someone who came from a tropical country) and Winter was a time to make Ice Kachang. Seriously, winters are cold, especially when the wind blows. It doesn't snow all the time in winter, though. To sum up the lessons learned: “Life has seasons. Some winters are long, and some are short. The best part? Spring always comes!”

We also had a special segment about the Revitalized Education Program that Toastmasters International will roll out. The current program needs improving because it is confusing and there is not enough emphasis on leadership. The new program will be simpler, leadership will have more weightage and be more technology-centric (with usage of videos and mobile applications). Interestingly, it will also feature tailored learning while retaining the self-paced learning that we have now. Want to know more? Click here: http://www.toastmasters.org/Members/RevitalizedEducationProgram.aspx

Till next meeting, as Ng Kin Foong, CC said: stage a coup of your imagination!

Carl Wong HL

Vice President of Public Relations

*Answer to "Why wear a helmet in a tunnel?":

It's to avoid hitting your head on the tunnel ceiling

Distinguished Toastmaster Coen Tan

Acting President Ng Kin Foong, CC presents the coveted Ribbon

A salute is in order

Celebrating April's birthday babies

Andrew Chen, ATMB, ALS sharing a light moment with VPM Tan Mingjian, CC

Birthday wish!

Break time with Johnbosco Ng in the foreground 

Ng Cher Khim, CTM, ALS from Toastmasters Club of Singapore, and our Area S4 Governor, Zhuo Shuzhen, ALS, ACB

From left: Chia Choon Kiat, ACS, CL and founding member Michael Wee, DTM

Coen Tan, DTM with Kenneth Yeo, ACS, ALB from Nee Soon TMC

Best Prepared Speech: Toastmaster Johnbosco Ng

Best Evaluator: Kenneth Yeo, ACS, ALB from Nee Soon TMC

Best Table Topic: Toastmaster Christina Ho