Trip to Switzerland - Plan It All By Yourself. - By Arun Rajamani

Hi,

Another good speech and a very informative one from Arun, a fellow toastmaster.

How many of you are not married in this group? All the unmarried people in the group after marriage hope you would go to honeymoon? What better place than Switzerland.

Good evening Toastmasters I am Arun Rajamani and would like to give you information on how you can plan a 7 day Switzerland trip yourself and not depend on travel agencies. For those who have not been to Switzerland I would like to share my experience with you and those already been there just sit back and relive the moments.

1^st thing when we plan a try we do is Google 5 days 6 nights trip to Switzerland and you would get 50 links only to realize you can cover so less in huge cost . I would like to give you tips how you can plan your own trip.

In any trip 3 things are key .

1    Travel ( Flight + local Travel)

2       Places to Visit

3       Hotels.

Let me talk about 1^st and most important thing Travel. Plan your trip 3 or 4 months in advance to get cheap flight tickets. Check for some flexible tentative dates and search for tickets. Once you get a dates where flight tickets are cheaper, next day go to your manager and apply leave and get a confirmation letter (this is very important). One Tip here checks for tickets from Mumbai or Delhi as well as you might get good rates from there.

Switzerland is one country which is very well intra connected. All you have to do is get an 8 day Swizz Euro Pass; you can use this for all kind of local transportation be it train, bus or Ferry.

Once you have booked your Too and Fro Tickets next important step is identify places to visit. Switzerland is too big to be covered in 5 or 6 days hence you will have to choose your cities to visit and what you want to explore. I would briefly go though the places I visited and would recommend you to see as well.

We landed in Zurich and took a train to Interlaken and enjoyed paragliding over here. We stayed in Interlaken for 3 days and covered places around it. If you are in Switzerland you have to see Jungfrau Europe highest altitude and Mt Titils where you would see world’s first rotating cable car. And visit beautiful city of Lucerne. You could also take world’s slowest express train Glacier Express to reach Switzerland southernmost City St.Moriz. On the way back to Zurich you could hop around to see Switzerland’s oldest City Chur. Do not miss our Commercial part of Zurich and Rhine Falls near Zurich.

By now you would have decided where you can halt, hence try to find out good hotels which fits in your budget. Here trip advisor to check out hotels review and booking.com using which you can block your hotels and get a confirmation, we halted at Interlaken, St Mortiz and Zurich. You would need Hotel Confirmation, Confirmed Air Tickets, and Leave Confirmation letter with other documents to get your visa stamping done. Do plan to get visa a month before to avoid last moment hassles.

This is in brief I wanted to tell you how you can plan for your trip , by planning yourself you can save min 30 K unless you shop more there , and visit lot of places . Since you travel on your own and not hurry to catch a guided tour bus have the freedom to explore on your own. Do plan a honeymoon trip if you are not married or just a trip to Switzerland with your family or friends.

Finally “If Wife is Happy, Life is happy “ 

Toastmasters Speech 6 ( Repeat ) - 10.5 Billion Minutes Per Day

10.5 Billion Minutes Per Day

10.5 Billion Minutes per day. What am I talking about?

Am I really making sense.

Is that a meaningful number ?

You are right, these were the questions that flashed my mind, when I read the data. Yes, the data is right. This time is equivalent to killing 333 new borns, who were supposed to live till 60 years of age, on the day of birth.

This statistics was later replaced by “How many things people share on Facebook?” Facebook later came up with a very nice and an honest quote which told, “Birthday cakes are made for people to be together. They give friends a place to gather and celebrate. But too much cake probably isn’t healthy. So birthday cake is a lot like Facebook”

Facebook realized this, but most of its users have failed to do, even after two years of the quote.

Let me share a few stories of what Facebook has done to this generation.

First one is a classic example. A girl’s status on FB, “I’m bored”.  You will have a 100 comments, “Oh, baby- what happened”, “Shall we go out”, “How come?” and so on and so forth. Weren’t we all bored at some time or the other. What’s so big about it? Why should it be a big issue? Then another post “Eating Idly”, “Going to temple” and so on and so forth. An addiction, which has gone from bad to worse by the years passed. A lack of Wi-fi or internet is considered worse than not having food. We just do not care, how much of it is enough.

Second story is that of ego boost. Facebook has become an ego booster. Have you seen the recent Myntra ad near Koramangala junction from St. John’s to Forum. It says “Live for Likes”. The first time I read it, it just read it again. Live for Likes, isn’t there any other purpose for life. And trust me this is happening.

The third and the last story from my speech today. It Is about my favorite quote on face book, with a young kid punching his hand. “ If you have a problem, face it. Don’t Facebook it”. Seriously, who ever created this deserves a big round of applause. Very true isn’t it. Probably most of you around here are matured enough and have grown up  before the facebook generation. But, the generation that is growing with Facebook does not think enough and you get weird statuses on face book. Starts from “This day is the worst day of my life” and can go up to abuses, F words and even “I could not think of a day without you. Now I live a dead man walking”.

Failure and depression is a part of everyone’s life. There are ways to deal with it. Putting it up for 100’s of people to see it is definitely not going to help. There are going to be a few who will sympathize, others will be happy that you are not happy and most don’t care. Why? Make a joke of yourself by letting people know things that are best left to be private. Sad is it not.

To summarize:  Let’s use face book like having a piece of birthday cake and not to eat the entire cake and have a bad stomach at the end of it.

Let’s have a Face to show the world, of having lived a life worthwhile and not a facebook page that shared the moments of weakness and addiction to the world. 

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Another Best Speaker of The Day !!!! Enjoyed presenting this topic

ToastMasters Speech 6 - Time Is Not Yours Forever !!!

Time Is Not Yours Forever    

       

A good house of around 2000 sq., with a small garden and a sitting area. On the seating area are a son and a father. Son has a laptop in his hand and father a old stick and a pair of thick glasses over his thin frame.  Father is around 80 years of age and son is around 35 years. A small sparrow is seen and the father asks his son “What is that?”

Son- “It is a sparrow, Dad.”

Father after sometime “What is that”

Son – “It is a sparrow Dad, you just asked”

Father after a few minutes seeing the bird at another spot in the garden, “Son, What is that?”

Son, very agitated the third time, “Dad, I already told you it is a sparrow. S-P-A-R-R-O-W”

Father gets up and goes into the house. Son is agitated, calls out “Dad, Dad, come back. Where are you going?”

After this goes back to his laptop and is busy with his work. Father comes back after a few minutes and hands the son a diary, with a certain page open. He gestured to him, “Read Loud”

The son reads out, “ Today, I have had the best day of my life. No big thing. Not a promotion, not a big ticket purchase. A very small happy event, my son asked me 31 times, “What is that”. It was a sparrow. I answered him several times, but the child in him was still inquisitive. I once told him it was a bird. Once it flew. Once it was a cute one and so on. After every time, I hugged him to see my child being so inquisitive and wanting to know”.

As he read the last line, son had moist eyes and father sat there unmoved. He simply hugged his father and they sat there for a long time, just shaken up.

Good Evening Friends and fellow toastmasters. Time if Not Ours Forever.

We are dependent on our parents for the first twenty five and on our kids for the last twenty five. In the first twenty five for money and guidance and in the last twenty five probably for love and care. It is the middle phase when we are probably all by our self.  Life does not last forever, none of the achievements or power does not either. So let’s let go of some steam and relax to enjoy those smiles and care. Finally we are here to be happy too.

Three things our generation lacks:

1.       Patience

2.       Empathy

3.       Satisfaction

We do not care to listen to someone until and unless there is a take away for us or a future benefit. Most times we do not have the time to just sit with our elders. We are bent upon reaching some point in life and we hardly relax. We have a pumped up life, where in the blood pressure is always high and we are worried of increasing our pay check at all times. This was not the case a few decades back. Our parents worked during the day and relaxed during the evenings. They stayed healthier. We have scientists from DRDO, who have done a lot for this country, who have lived this way. We might not do any better than them running the race for money. We do not realize “How much is enough?”

Do we have empathy for the old and disabled? We do not. Few might and that’s really great of them. The reason I say this is the increasing number of old age homes. Parents who have sacrificed for their child’s future have a say to see them grow and be happy. Because of lack of empathy, today we say they crib and keep them away. Din’t we crib for that elusive remote car. For which our father’s might have let go a few breaks in their offices to save money and get us one. Today we do the same for our kids. We do sacrifice a lot and get them all they want. We do not want them to face hardships. Tomorrow we might face worse consequences, if we do not care our elders.

Satisfaction. We were happy with one movie a month on a scooter, with popcorn. Today, a movie with nachos, a family tub popcorn and even a dinner after that is not satisfactory. The media/marketing is responsible for this too. They would advertise all kinds of offers. Offers are forced on you through your mobile phones. Don’t cook Wednesdays by Pizza Hut. By not cooking on an average you spend 1000/- rupees and also add a lot of trans fat to your tummy. A Sunday afternoon new dish trial at home is far more healthier. The trend to save is going out of the window. Everything is EMI today.

Lastly to summarise. Be patient to elders – they are becoming children by the growing day.

Be empathetic – They have done a lot for you, beyond your imagination.

Be Satisfied – It is One Life, We are here to be happy and not crib to the tomb.

Time is Not Yours Forever. So Live Life, don’t be a Machine, that will once be dumped after depreciation. 

This was my P6 Speech, I messed it because of lack of practice, I will be presenting another one in my next blog. 

A Girl Who Demanded Education - Speech by Sneha Maria Dominic

Hi,

Sharing a speech that my friend recently gave in our toastmaster's meet. We won the best speaker for the day together. This is her speech excerpts. I share this as I got to know of another personality, who has contributed something to this world :)

Let me start with a question: do you think Malala Yousafazi deserved Nobel Prize?

Mixed opinions ha? I’m not going to comment over that question today. But I’m here to introduce you to another woman who has set her entire life as an example for the cause Malala represents – education of girls in developing countries.

Fellow toast masters, esteemed guests,

Kakaenya Ntaiya – she is the protagonist of my story. She is a woman who has defied local tradition, got an education, and now crusades to bring the same opportunities to the girls of her homeland.

Kakaneya was born into Massai Tribe in Western Kenya. At the age of just five, Kakenya's life was mapped out for her by her Maasai community. A marriage had been arranged and when she becomes a teenager, she would be circumcised and then married. From then on she was supposed to learn all things that could make her a perfect wife – raise cattle and corn, collect fire wood, cook food for her siblings and fetch water from rivers. An experience common for all girls in rural Kenya. Meanwhile she focused on her education.

Kakenya dreamed of becoming a teacher but as she reached age 13, she came to a crossroads. If she followed the traditional Maasai path and went through with the circumcision – which by the way is performed by a rusty knife and no anesthetic or antibiotic - then she would have to forget all about continuing her education. That’s the tradition.

She did something which most girls would not have done- she tried to negotiate with her father – she would undergo the ceremony only if he agrees to send her back to school. A girl not undergoing circumcision brings shame to her family. Finally he agreed.

Life went on. At high school, she got the chance to take her education even further, with a scholarship to study in the US at the Randolph-Macon Women's College in Virginia. But to get there, she needed the permission of the men in the village.

"They said: 'What a lost opportunity. This should have been given to a boy. We can't do this,'" she recalls.

Kakenya refused to give up and took her case to the village elders. She went to each of their homes every day morning and pleaded. She triumphed and left to study in the US. Being in America was an incredible experience and opened her eyes to some elements of her upbringing in Enoosaen. 

She learned that the ceremony she went through when she was 13 years old was called female genital mutilation and that it was against the law in Kenya. She learned that she did not have to trade part of her body to get an education and that there are three million girls in Africa at risk of undergoing this mutilation. Those things made her angry. She decided to do something. 

 The speech is inspired from a TED talk.

https://www.ted.com/talks/kakenya_ntaiya_a_girl_who_demanded_school .

Gifted : A Book By Sudha Menon & V.R. Ferose

The book talks about 15 stories of people, who have achieved in life, inspite of difficulties. A book that was co-written and launched  by VR Ferose, Ex-MD SAP Labs and Current Head of Globalization Services within SAP. Beyond all the above roles, a very humble and a human being, who is making a difference to the lives of many differently abled people around India and World. Thanks to Sudha Menon, who has teamed up with him to write this book.

In picture - Ankit Jindal -  India's First Marketing Manager with Visual Impairment

                  Ashwin - A successful engineer with Cerebral Palsy

                  Sundeep Rao - A Brilliant stand up comedian with Visual Impairment

                  VR Ferose - Sr.VP Globalization Services & Ex-MD SAP Labs

                  

I have started reading the book and the first story is that of a teenage girl Aisha. Aisha deals with Pulmonary Fibrosis. A difficulty in breathing. The lungs perform only upto 20% of its capacity. Learning to deal with it, Aisha at one point marks by telling - "If I have to have pulmonary fibrosis - I choose to have 'Happy Pulmonary Fibrosis'". I just felt goosebumps, when i read this. A girl of seventeen had the courage to face a grim future. 

The stories of Ankit, Ashwin and George Abraham are something that simply leave you speechless. I am yet to complete the book. The book reads into the stories and struggles of these super human beings. George at a point says "Disability is God given - Handicap is Man-Made". The stories in the book shows- resolve, grit, amazing faith and trust. Above all EXTREME HARDWORK. 

I have seen one such girl in Deena Nilaya, a house for destitute children. This place has children affected by AIDS. We had been for a day visit as a part of CSR activity. As we helped other children play, a young girl entered holding the hand of a help. The girl was neatly dressed and very well mannered. The girl had semi grown limbs and hands. As other kids played, she picked a ball and started bouncing it around. The ball would slip away and she would jump to hold it. With all curiosity I approached the child to ask, what she did by the day. She simply answered "Study maadtini", meaning " I study". I was a little taken back, i saw the child would have difficulty in holding a pen or writing. But, the sister there came to my help. She told that the girl was in her First Grade and she had the best writing in class. 

The story does not end here. As we stood by her, a camera man came to do his duty of clicking pictures. The girl simply held her hand up and told no and moved away. The Sister there told me, she was an extremely sweet child and did not like others to symathize with her. Wow.....What an attitude. That is being able to live with dignity. 

This incident is close to a year old, but i still remember like it was yesterday. They are extremely strong people and all they desire is a little respect and care. They can go far and achieve lot more than many of us. 

The book "GIFTED" touches upon many lives and will touch many lives because - ALL THE PROCEEDS FROM THE BOOK WILL GO TO "ENABLE INDIA" TRUST. I would strongly recommend all my friends to read and gift this book to people whom they know. Let us understand a stronger world better. 

- With Sincere Thanks to VR Ferose - Sr. Vice-President SAP  & Amazing Human Being Making a difference to the World of Differently Abled.

( With whom I have interacted personally because of the book MAVERICK and later on. The humility of the man is that being the Sr. VP and not directly related to any tasks - he still responds to all the mails and recognizes, greets when he meets us around the campus. My book friend - I can say, with a lot of joy )

Toastmasters Speech 5: Little Angels

Little Angels

 I visited a doctor at Indira Nagar. The doctor was my friend’s doctor. I walked up the stairs to the first floor room of the clinic. Wiped my face and sat down. I saw a few people around. They all looked like people, who had carried some pain. Yes, it was a visit to a dentist.

Good Evening Fellow Toastmasters and Esteemed Guests.

A visit to a dentist, on most occasions is when we have acute pain. Same was the case, on that day. I had a wisdom tooth that was growing so vigorously, that it wanted to push the other tooth away. That was the kind of wisdom I was expecting. Unfortunately, I had to get the tooth removed and may be my wisdom.

Ok, let us get back to the scene at the clinic. The atmosphere was a little tense. The people around were a middle aged lady around 35 years. A youngster, his mother and a aged couple. All in all, we were six people in the waiting room.

In came a voice, “No papa, no”. “I want to go home”. “Please”.

Everyone started seeing each other’s face.

Then another voice “Don’t worry. It is not going to pain. You will be ok”.

The doctor in Kannada asks the nurse to hold the girl tight.

“Uncle, I want to go home. Dad, I will not ask for Barbie. Please Dad. I will do my homework”.

It was time for all the confessions. If I had started writing down all of them, I could have easily completed one full page. The mood in the waiting room was changing. The guy next to me was holding himself from laughing. His mother was signaling him from the other side, not to laugh. He tried hard, I could see.

The next were the old couple, who had probably seen life. They had kids and grand kids, also were used to such tantrums. They simply looked at each other and empathized with the child.

The most important person in the room, was the middle aged lady. She was the mother of the little girl inside. She had moist eyes and also a blink of smile in her eyes. The eyes were telling a lot of things. Her eyes showed the pain the girl was going through and the inner smile for the confessions and naughtiness that her daughter was putting forth. That was a mother for you. The next voice.

“That’s ok. It won’t hurt you.”

“Nurse hold her tight” in kannada.

Oops, Nurse cotton please. The little girl had bit the doctor.

The nurse rushed out and took some equipment’s from the other room.  Probably something that was required for first-aid. The doctor had become a patient for a moment.

Ahhhhhh……. Mummmy….. mummy….. a huge cry in the cabin. The decayed tooth was removed and the cry got lower by every passing second. The girl walked out of the room and everyone was looking at the little girl. The guy next to me and myself, just looked at each other and smiled. The mother smiled at us and walked out holding her girl’s face close to her arm.

It was my turn and I had to get my tooth removed. This was not an easy task I realized. The doctor with the tools, looked like a militant in an army camp, who could easily torture a soldier from the other camp. He had no thought of what he was going to do to me. This was my friend’s father, I actually forgot for the moment. The first needle pierced my gums and the gums became like a numb piece of flesh in my mouth. I could sense there is something in my mouth and I could not sense what was happening to it. The next minute I opened my eyes, I could see the doctor holding my teeth. He told, teeth were like diamonds, preserve it. I looked at him, with a disappointment on my face. What will I do with it. Its not in the place it had to be.

This was a small incident that I saw a child in pain. Children are to be cared and loved. They can’t take the prick of a needle. The abuse that is happening to children today, is something very sinful. As parents and parents to be, we need to take care. Our parents probably had more peaceful days, when we were at school. Teach children awareness of abuse and protect them. Let’s leave this planet a better place for the generations to come.

Thank You.

A speech at the Caterpillar Toastmasters Club. I win my thrid best speaker award for my P5 :) Woo.... Super... Happy

Toastmasters Speech 4: An Unforgettable Night !!!

An Unforgettable Night !!!

I was fast asleep, after a tired day at work. I turned around from left to right on my bed and I heard a sweet voice call out “Hi Deepak”. I wanted to see, who it was in the middle of the night. I tried opening my eyes, I could not. I heard the voice again. “Don’t try opening your eyes, if you want to speak to me for any longer”. Curiosity and enchantment got the better of me and I obeyed to the order.

Good Evening Friends, Fellow Toastmasters and Esteemed Guests.

Let me call this voice, “Sweet Voice” for convenience. My sweet voice called out again, “I would wake you up at 5 in the morning”. I told “Fine”. Then our conversation continued. “What have you been doing all week? We haven’t played a game for long”. “Ha ha. I have been a little busy for the past few weeks. Hope you did not miss me so much”. “I was kidding ” came in a reply.  “I saw a few photos of your recent trip. It looks a nice place”. I am still confused. I am wondering within me – “Who could this be?”. “How could someone know so many details?”, “What is happening with me”. Could this be some atma – Na, the voice was too sweet. Could it be a ghost? – The voice was too sweet to be a ghost and not do anything to me for so long.

I was worried a little now. I could sense a bead of sweat flow down my side locks. I was scared and curious. I did not want to get over, without knowing who this is. I asked a question. “Do you know me ?”. “Have I seen you?”. “ Yes, I have and so have you”.  “Ok”. “What next? What else do you want to ask?”.  “ Ha Ha” came in a cheeky voice. “You are worried aren’t you?”. I tried to stay calm. “Anyone who has known me, knows that I wake up early, can play this game. This is not very difficult”.

The next thing was not something I expected. “I know where you have the photos of your old crush?”. ”Where?”. ”In your g-mail, a draft mail with the subject – Love at First Sight”. Ok, now this was serious. This was getting a little messy. Even my wife did not know this. How could this happen? I wanted to open my eyes and even more badly now. In came the instruction,” Do not try to open your eyes yet”. I was feeling like Yudhishtra stuck with Yaksha. But, my sweet voice was not asking me any difficult questions.

I could not hold on to it anymore. I opened my eyes. There was no one, but just my iPhone staring away at me. It was not a ghost, it was not a friend kidding nor was it Yaksha from the dwapara yuga. There was no one around. It was my sub-conscious mind. It was hearing to this friend, who I am tied to all day and all night. It is next to me, beside my bed; sometimes even when my wife is not around. I had just realized how much I loved this piece of art. I picked it up and a smile appeared on my face.

By then I heard my wife, “Get Up” its already ten minutes past five. I was wondering, why is she not asleep?. It was actually five in the morning and I just woke up and I had dreamt the wildest of things that could happen.

I just smiled, picked up my phone and plugged it to my speakers, before getting into the shower. My phone knew everything my alarm, my Facebook and even my crush. I am addicted to technology, like most of us here.

Don’t be scared, if you dream of a voice – when you go to sleep tonight.

Good Evening and thank you all for the opportunity. Keep Dreaming. 

Toastmasters Speech 3: Face the Wind

Face The Wind

With the word Wind, a word that comes to our mind is Rains. During the last rains I was stuck in Bangalore Traffic. I was riding back from a friend’s house and my phone rang. I could not pick the call. It was my friend Anvith. I have known Anvith ever since. His wife Ananya, Anvith and me have been friends since we have known, who we are. As the phone stopped ringing I reached the street of my old house. There was a huge traffic jam. I brought down the side stand and walked by to check what had happened. The tree, next to my window in the old house had come to ground. They were in the process of clearing the tree.

Good Evening Friends, Fellow Toastmasters and esteemed guests.

This was the tree which used to stay grounded when the wind would blow from the left to right. The tree today had come down, because over the period the winds had changed and my favourite tree dint have the strength. But, I had studied all my board exams sitting by the window and those tough hours of study made me what I am today. It was tough then, but when I think back now; I realize the grind is what made me strong for the years to come.  My favorite tree could not do much, but as a human I was more fortunate.

My favorite tree was cleared. A leaf came over and stuck to my bike, which I put into my pocket. As I started driving, my tree and the call got my mind wandering. Memories started flying by to another rainy night and Anvith’s call. By then Anvith was married for 4 years and Ananya was getting close to the date. She was 7 months pregnant. That day’s call will stay with me forever.  Anvith called and I reached Cloud 9. We were expecting a news of premature birth and friends walked towards the ward. But, when we got close we saw Anvith sitting with his head leaning over the chair. Ananya had lost her baby, second miscarriage in a span of 18 months. Two of my best friends were shattered. We stood by him, no answer.  Their child was supposed to be the first baby amongst we friends.

My thoughts lost and as I hit reality; I was about bang into a auto. I managed to hold on. The rains had reduced in the last 15 minutes. I parked the vehicle to check the phone. I saw 8 missed calls from Anvith. Anvith does not call repeatedly, it was not his habit. I was scared now. The memories of 2012, started ringing. I did not want another bad news for them. They were already shattered. Ananya was pregnant after a gap of 2 years. Just then came a message, reach Lalbagh Nursing Home asap. I was shivering as I drove. Parked the bike and in the parking lot was Anvith, sitting on one of the steps facing the other side. I went by and just tapped him gently. Anvith turned around and hugged me tight, he just uttered “baby boy”. We wept like 4^th grade kids and waited for all friends to come in through the night.

Ananya and Anvith faced the Wind, I stood by the Wind of Pressure and Tough times of life in different time. My favorite tree, due to it helplessness died. We as human beings have more abilities to fight situations. Lets do it and Face the Wind. Face the Wind and Hold On Pain Ends.

Disclaimer: The characters in the above speech are fictious. Any resemblences to a person dead/alive may be treated as purely coincidental. Thank you.

ToastMasters Speech 2: Sixes, Fours, Wickets and Inspirations !!!

I would get up every morning when the Indian team toured Australia. Sit up with all earnestness and follow every ball till 7.30 and its time to go to school. I would sit through the night, to watch a Indo-Pak match in Canada. I have watched Steve Waugh battle a test match against India, and get out for handling the ball and my mom would handle me from behind

The beautiful game of cricket has always inspired many around the world and me too.

Good Evening fellow toastmasters, guests and the President.

The game that I love the most and has always inspired me - is cricket. The mention of this game, arguably will not go without the mention of his name. A man loved by millions around the world, Sachin. We used to write his name on our bats and never moved away from the TV’s when he batted. The fondest memory is his innings against the Aussies, in the sand storm match. The match stopped and he sat in the pavilion with his helmet on; waiting for the match to start. What happened when the match started was just one of the miracle innings. Sachin single handedly guided India to the finals. The grit and determination of this man was just awesome. He taught the world, what focus could do.

 Sachin was lucky for another great cricketer. He passed his cap to the umpire after each of his ten wickets, in the match against Pakistan.

Yes, its Anil Kumble. Anil got hit on his jaw and was injured while he batted. This was the time, when India relied heavily on Anil and Srinath. The injury on the jaw, was very bad and he was strapped with a bandage around his head. Doctors advised him not to move his jaw. He comes out to bowl and even traps Lara. Later that evening, doctors strictly had to stop bowling; or face serious health implications, when he decided to fly back to India. This was the kind of commitment, which Anil displayed.

Anil Kumble late after his retirement, went to see another healing cricketer in Boston, USA.  He was the hero of the World Cup in the sub- continent.  He was Yuvraj Singh.

This was a tale of inspiration, beyond proportions. We realized the significance and sacrifice of the victory, a little after the World Cup 2011. It was with the book by Yuvraj Singh,”The test of my life”. Another fighter, who has fallen and came back stronger every time. Before the World Cup, he was not in form. Many felt why he was selected. But, Yuvi was already battling Cancer by now. He was coughing up blood in the early stages of the tournament. He played with pain and won important matches in critical stages with bowling and batting.  Along with him was a team that gelled well under and exemplified leader.  He did not have a single major score till the final and came out in the final ahead of Yuvraj, Dhoni. The whole team played with a grit and determination never seen before. Showed what can happen, when we means more than I.

Yuvraj played with a photo in his kit through the World Cup. Again suggested by the man himself to search for motivation. Yuvi found it in Sachin himself. 

As all good things have to come to an end. So did an era. An era in which Indian team grew from strength to strength. He faced back aches, heart breaks and even has a broken toe that cannot be healed. He finally bowed out on 14^th November 2013. He touched down upon the pitch, as a mark of respect and recited a speech that left many Indians in tears. A day that showed the humility of this great man.

These cricketers, who have excelled in their professions, have taught us: focus, commitment, team comes first attitude, a quality to never give up and to stay grounded. These moments have always inspired me and stayed with me ever since.  The game of cricket has inspired many.

A game teaches a lot and inspires for life. I would urge all my friends to play and follow one game/sport, if you are not doing so. It serves you by giving a healthy mind and body. 

Conclusion: My evaluator felt this speech was too broad and could have been better with a more narrow topics. Thanks to him, I got my first "Best Speaker" badge with it. :)

ToastMasters Speech 2: Teach - The Lego Blocks Way !!!

13*1 = 13

13*2 = 26

13*3 = 39

13*4….. 13*4…..13*4 ……

Teacher: You din’t learn your tables again. You can’t even memorize one table…..Why do you come to school?

Memorizing, without knowing why, when and what… does not help.

Good Evening friends, fellow toastmasters and esteemed guests.

The topic I have chosen for my second speech “Teach – The Lego Blocks Way”  is about teaching children below the age of 8 years. Why specifically kids below 8 years? It is because after this age we only synthesize information based on these basics. From a very long time and even till date, in India we are most concerned about the marks our children score; than to see that they understand what they learn. This pressure makes child memorize the subject that needs to be learnt. We are happy just looking at the marks and do not bother much about enabling them to understand.

Have we seen kids play with Lego Blocks? What does a child do? We do not teach much, right. We simply give the kit for the child to play. The child unwraps it and starts playing with it. Slowly and steadily the child sees the book, with the helicopter, a house etc made out of the building blocks. The child tries to make one of them. How does the child follow? Have you ever wondered? The child follows it with the color and the size of the lego. What happens here is the fascination of colors and sizes of the lego blocks. This leads to a  very simple and profound learning process. A Lego block way is Science in the simplest form.

The word Science reminds me of Laws and Equations. Newton’s Laws, First, Second and third; we even thought why dint a jackfruit fall on Newton, instead of an Apple. This was my state, still I met my Principal a few minutes before my exams.

 I should say I was fortunate to learn from him. I remember my Principal asking me to state Newton’s First Law. I had memorized and forgot. Imagine, Principal asking a child of fifth standard, just a few minutes before the exam. He taught me in those few minutes and I learnt and would not forget the law till date. An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force. He taught these in simple words. He simply told – a stone is placed here, if I do not push it and nothing happens. This stone will remain here forever. Why does a car stop or this stone fall, when thrown. There is friction acting on the car, in case of a Car. For Instance of a stone, the force of gravity pulls it down. It is simple law and taught in a even simpler way. He broke down the two parts of the Law of Inertia and explained in day to day terms. What my principal did there was to teach me the building blocks of the law.

 Let me come back to my tables story and why I never learnt tables beyond 12 tables, all life.

Thanks to my cousin. As I was sitting and memorizing one day, he simply told multiply and write. It was not the right way. It probably ruined my speed in some of those mathematics exams. But, he made me realize that it is multiplication. Can any of us tell our children 2*2 is nothing but 2 added 2 times. We have to make it simple. Bring it down to the basics. It is the toughest part right. But, that is the right way to teach. Keep it simple. This is also building ahead with the building blocks of tables from 1-9.

As simple as how water finds its way, learning should also find one. To summarize – teach kids the words and sentences right. They will get their answers right. Teach them to read and understand, they will analyze it right. Teach children to get basic mathematics right, they can solve bigger problems in future.

“The object of teaching a child is to enable the child to get along without a teacher.” – Elbert Hubbard.

So, let us teach children to learn. It is not enough to just read, memorize and submit for marks. Learning is more than just marks and college seats. 

The speech that got my first "Best Speaker" badge.... :) 

ToastMasters Speech 1: My Introduction

Shuklaambara Dharam Vishnum
Shashi Varnam Chatur Bhujam
Prasanna Vadanam Dhyaayet
Sarva Vighna Upashaanthaye

A small prayer for the occasion. This famous sloka sung for Ganesha. Lord Ganesha is the one, who is worshipped first for every occasion. Even before the prayers, we do one small act. We light a lamp. My name signifies “light” and I am Deepak. My name was chosen by mother, who picked the name from a Kannada novel.

A warm welcome to the President of the Club, Fellow Toastmasters and everyone present here for the first meeting of “SAP Speak to Lead Toastmasters Club”.

I am Deepak, a hard core Bangalore an. I love this city. This city breeds a lot of young minds and allows them to express their exuberance. The best part about the city is its people and the climate. People are extremely hospitable and climate is not too far behind either. The Software hub of India, The Silicon City – I’m bitten by the bug too. A Software Engineer by Profession and still doing a lot of soul searching.

There are three stories from my life, that I would like to share with you all today.

First is the story of “My Childhood”. We lived in a locality filled with 1BHK houses. There were approximately 20 houses and lots of children. The best part was an empty site to play. We would play all day in the field. In a site sized 60*60, we would have more than 11 fielders. Imagine pinching a single in such a set up. Falls, blood, getting scolded by parents was like breakfast, lunch and dinner probably. We dint leave the dark nights either. That was filled with caroms, hide n seek, kabbaddi and Monopoly. The exuberance of being with friends in outdoor games is something awesome. Even 1/- rupee was pocket money back then and we planned to spend it. Work Life Balance at its best. We worked at school and we balanced the play amongst different games. Goosebumps…. Even now. Those times don’t fade.

The second story; A story of learning to drive. A teenager’s story. My first set of wheels, was not a cycle – not a CBZ – but a second hand Luna. The first was to my college. That being the first day I took out that far, I took it out at around 7 30 AM in the morning. This is early 2000’s and the roads were still little empty, unlike today where we have cabs around the clock. I was riding on the extreme right. A driver from a BMTC bus, popped his head out and called out “First time aa”. I smiled and he told very politely, be to your left. This happened right in front of the Vidhana Soudha. These were the times of 17’s and 18’s. A crush every new day and when we start looking out for the eyes, beauty, smile and so on. Leaves a smile, when you think how stupid some thoughts were. But the beauty of it, is the thought of being lost. Exuberance of Youth begins here.

Third and the last story that I want to share is something – that stays close to my heart with every passing day. We had been to an orphanage, which takes care of children infected by AIDS. The day began by making the kids play and making an effort to make it special for them. As we were playing with a few kids, a child arrived neatly dressed and someone, who you would immediately take notice of. The child was stout, not grown to its age. The limbs were curved and fingers not fully grown. This girl got a ball, which she kept bouncing; without getting tired. The ball would bounce away and she would jump to not allow the move away from her. At last, I went to her and asked; what do you do during your school time. I expected, her to tell she simply would be around the school. She could have easily done that. The answer was “I study”. The Nun there told me that she had the best writing and topped the class. I was left shell shocked. I kept watching this child for the rest of the day. Exuberance of Life – was what I learnt that day.

She left a lasting impression, for life. We crib, we give excuses and we cry for not getting things in life. This girl did not get Life !!!..  But the girl was so strong, at one look – she would command respect. I will not leave this story incomplete. Her name was “Rani” – A Real Queen – The best example I could put forth for Exuberance.