Just a short post to say that our Christmas party was a huge success!
Abandoning the restaurant idea this year we opted for Christmas at the Armoury, our home, and a more relaxed agenda which created more opportunity for mingling and just being ourselves. A few of us shared childhood Christmas memories and Mrs. Claus roasted our club President ;-)
We ate Turkey and poached salmon with all kinds of vegetables and salads and some of the most decadent deserts on the face of the planet. All of this was made for us by caterer Judy Stewart who, in my opinion, it would take any other caterer some doing to top.
I like this family style Christmas a lot more than following a packed agenda with formal speeches and worrying about timing and what not. I'm hoping this will be the way we do it every year from now on.
Tonight's theme was serenity and the word of the night was jovial.
The introductions: Our President and Distinguished Toastmaster Harry Kingston led the introductions by posing the question: If you could take off tomorrow, where would you go to feel serene? We heard about everything from a mountain in the Adirondacks to just curling up in bed and shutting out the world. I think the answer that most impressed me came from Carole Anne who said she looks within. Like true happiness, serenity comes from within. The ability or decision to be happy and serene in spite of outer circumstances not because of them.
The Table Topics: Sgt at Arms John Anderson led one of the most impressive sessions of table topics I've seen. I especially felt that the question he directed at me was tailor made. John described a situation where I am an empty - nester (true) looking forward to not having to put on a big Christmas. Unexpectedly, my 3 children show up at the door on Christmas Day. How do I maintain my sense of serenity in this scenario.
It was the first time I felt at ease during table topics. I was able to tell everyone how maintaining my serenity would not be a problem in such a situation. I do indeed have 3 grown children, but I miss the days when we were all together. Passing summers playing Nintendo and how I'd drag out all the old games ( yes I kept them all) and we could sit around playing and reminiscing. And given that I have one son who lives far away that I hardly ever see, I'd be glad of having them all under one roof again
The Speakers: We listened to two good speeches tonight. Treasurer Vincent Foy educated us on the differences between 4 basic types of television which should help us to make informed buying decisions in the future, and Harry Kingston made us more aware of how efficiently Canada works to keep its citizens safe during major public emergencies through interoperability.This is the cooperation between various government agencies and civilians working in the public health and safety sector from the federal level down to the local level.
The Toastmaster: Yours truly was charged with the task of chairing the meeting for the first time ever. Yes, it was a little nerve wracking; I don't mind telling you that, but sometimes, you just have to shove yourself out of the boat if you're ever going to stretch your horizons. And if I hadn't started going to Toastmasters, I'd still be unable to even stand up to read in front of people much less run a meeting. I hadn't really realized it before tonight, but I have grown. The nerves are still there, but I believe the only people who don't feel anything are dead. So, it's a good thing. What's important about what you get out of Toastmasters is what you learn so if you ever find that you are the Toastmaster, here are the top 3 tips I received: 1) Don't leave the lectern before your speaker arrives. 2) Don't make your notes at the lectern and 3) If you change your mind about how you were going to do something, don't draw attention to it by bringing it up.
The Wrap: The Seaway Toastmasters are proud to have a brand new Competent Communicator in Sylvie Wilkins who completed her 10th speech at the Nov 24 meeting. District 61 has a new pin designed around our district theme; "Take your passion, make it happen" and Sylvie was presented that pin this evening. The meeting was a great success, and I look forward to our Christmas Supper next week!
