The Forgetful Toastmaster

Today I was the toastmaster in the local Toastmasters club and I must say that I did a disastrously poor job. I started the meeting with the following lines..

Under the roof yellow and cold
We all have come young and old
To discuss a matter grave and bold
This is story that must be told.

The perilous journey has started
And so has the enemy
To wither it will end, no one knows
The path must be trodden, whether it rains or snows.

O! Wanderers of the concrete jungle
Watch thy step, for fear is lurching behind
But fear is what you should fear not
For your wits are good and wisdom is fine.

Run and walk, jump and fall, hop and skip
All in proper amounts is the trick
Luck is on your side and so are the masters
If you have the will, you can be the competent toastmaster.

and ended it with the following lines..

Under the roof yellow and cold
We all have come young and old
Far and wide from the lands of Toast Shire
Rule the world with our speech is what we desire.

An ah here and an ah there
About’em we don’t much care
To pause or not is still a debate
The counsel of grammar we still hate.

Ages unbeknown, the quest continues
The trail is long and the territory new
Stammer or not, the hunt is on
We march forward, hammer and tongs.

Withered and emboldened by adventures
Neither gold nor silver we run after
Our treasure is a hearty applause
And this is why we come to the toastmasters.

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Apart from reciting these two proses, I did everything that shouldn't have been done. I forgot who & when to call, and when to announce the break for the collection of ballots. I think I took my role very casually for I was not well-prepared and on top of that I think I got quite over-confident, which anyways is not a good thing to happen. Anyways, from every experience you learn a great deal and so have I from this one and I will make a better show the next time. The only comment that I got was..

Went overboard with 'LOTR'. Complicated stuff like that can put one off-balance. But a brave and adventurous approach on the whole.

- Rajesh Madan

Au revoir