The Common Cold
Who would have thought the common cold
could ever yield comedic gold?
But for those who wish to orate
the subject matter proved just great,
and somehow from this common thread
a lot of funny things were said.
We laughed at symptoms - cough and sneeze,
and at outrageous remedies
well guarded in some secret vault -
and laughter - how it does exalt!
Somehow a subject quite mundane
moved all into some fresh terrain -
promoting potions meant to heal
the varied aches and pains we feel.
And once our fancies took to flight,
Toastmasters chuckled all the night!
Those words - like mucus, phlegm and spit
embellish speeches quite a bit -
but best of all? The word catarrh -
a true vocabulary star!
A wonderful way to explain
an inflammation of membrane
from stuff that plugs the human nose
which each into a tissue blows.
The beauty then, of Thursday nights
is finding such profound delights
among folk not afraid to reach
for fodder for another speech!
By Sharon Flood Kasenberg, Jan 13, 2017
My husband and I have been looking for ways to meet people and get involved in the area since we moved to North Perth. Atwood doesn't have a lot happening, except the Lion's Club, which my husband promptly joined. (It's an "Atwood thing", we were told. Men in this town pretty well all become Lions or sign on as volunteer firemen, and since Todd is asthmatic and doesn't do ladders well, the choice seemed clear.) That helped Todd integrate, but I knew that I also needed to develop some interests outside my door, but still close to home.
While scouring a local community bulletin, I discovered that Listowel, a more bustling town just five minutes away, was looking for Toastmasters to join their local group. I've had some experience with public speaking, and for many years considered the possibility of becoming a Toastmaster to hone my skills. I thought it seemed like a possible way to meet nice people too, so I decided to check out the Linguists of Listowel and see what they were all about. Since I don't drive, Todd brought me to the first meeting, but as we were driving home he said he'd let Toastmasters be "my thing" if I wanted to join on my own. (He didn't want to cramp my style.) However, since we'd both enjoyed the experience that evening I told him I'd be happy to try something new and different with him. (Words every man married for decades longs to hear, right?!)
At our first meeting we didn't know what to expect, but we were seated beside experienced members of the group who explained each portion of the evening to us. We met a room full of warm and welcoming people who were encouraging with each other, and a lot more interested in pointing out each others' strengths than offering harsh criticisms of perceived weaknesses. We both left there feeling good about learning how to speak in front of these people. When we returned the following week we were greeted like old friends.
We've been involved for about a month now, and Thursday night's meeting was so much fun! The topic for the evening was "The Common Cold", which (I have to confess) didn't seem very inspired to me. I was asked to read something for the Literary Corner - choose any written passage and read it to the group - four minutes maximum. I got nervy and chose to read one of my own blog posts. I wasn't sure how well my efforts would be received, but I forged ahead and felt my post was well received. My husband was asked to be Grammarian - the member who enriches vocabulary by introducing a new word to the group, then counts how many times people fit that word into their comments, and also keeps track of the use of filler words (like um and eh) that speakers use that evening so that we all learn to root out negative speech habits.
In keeping with the theme of the evening, he chose the word catarrh - "inflammation of mucus membranes and nasal passages". Needless to say, that word got well used by every person present. The subject of colds, cold symptoms and cold remedies was a source of much amusement as the night progressed. A toast was made to Canada, for opening the country's secret vault of the best 150 home remedies ever. Our chair for the evening regaled us with fun facts about obscure cold remedies, and our Table Topics Master invented a fun game where he passed around two envelopes - one contained slips of paper naming common cold symptoms, and the other contained slips denoting unusual cold remedies. Our task was to remove one slip from the first "symptom" envelope, name and wax somewhat poetic about our symptom, and then spend the balance of the allotted two minutes explaining how the randomly-pulled cold remedy from the next envelope helped cure us - or didn't.
It's hard to maintain composure while people are talking about using outlandish home remedies like horseradish, or onion necklaces, to cure their cold symptoms. And the hilarity continued when people described exactly how they'd use each remedy to obtain relief. Snort that elderberry juice up your nose - it'll clear up the pesky catarrh in your sinus cavity! Bite into a clove of garlic - munch down that sucker like it's an apple - by golly it'll clear up your cough - and as an added benefit, continued use will keep anyone from ever getting close enough to share a germ with you again! Does chicken soup sound like a boring cure? Not if it's made with the recipe we heard! We also learned that French Canadians substitute gin for whisky in their Hot Toddies, and that the word catarrh just never gets old.
I would never have dreamed that so much laughter could ensue from discussion of the common cold, but we managed it.
There were serious moments in the evening too. One member gave a heartfelt speech about the importance of giving blood. It was well thought out and delivered. My own contribution was more serious than most of the rest of the evening too, but what I've discovered about Toastmasters is that every speech - be it serious or silly - has its merits. Whether we spend the evening laughing or nodding in serious agreement, everyone leaves edified. And fed with yummy snacks too! I think it's safe to say that each Linguist of Listowel learns something new every Thursday night, and leaves feeling good about what they experienced.
What better way could there be to spend a Thursday night?
No comments:
Post a Comment