Changing the Lens

Sometimes in life it helps to "change the lens" on one's world-view camera. Lenses range all the way from microscopes to telescopes and everything in between--showing broader or narrower views. Last night, quite by accident (I thought), I looked through a different lens. Someone asked me if I would serve as a speech judge for something called the Academic Decathlon. It was just a couple of hours on a Monday night, so why not?

This is a wonderful program designed to encourage academic excellence in a variety of areas. Each school has a team of nine students: 3 must get A's; 3 must get B's; and 3 must get C's or under. Very creative here. So two of us were put in a classroom and we listened to 8 prepared speeches of 4 minutes each, plus an impromptu speech of 1 1/2 minutes. I was the timekeeper and each of us had to score them on various aspects of their presentation.

Well, what a mix of kids and topics! What a cross-section of America! We had 2 black males,
2 white males, 2 white girls, 1 black girl, and 1 Vietnamese-American girl. They were 9-12 graders. We weren't told their age or their school. So here they came, one at a time, pretty much scared to death, to stand in front of these two "judges". I was so impressed with their courage and efforts.

Some speeches were more intellectual and well thought out, some were clever, some were poignant. I remember talks about citizen involvement in a democracy, why drug rep lunches are a good thing, the way music video games demean "real" music, why lipo-suction is a bad thing, why Walmart is a bad company, what creatures from another planet might experience when visiting earth. and then there were the other two. An extremely nervous young man told the deeply personal story of how his dad "took" his sister away when he was a little boy and how he and his mom have never seen her since. And the young woman who lives with her legally blind mother, has been in trouble with the law, detests the rest of her family, and the plans she has for the future, including becoming a tatoo artist, a cop, a district attorney, and a judge. And how she never wants to get married or have children.

Well, I wanted to take them all home with me! Doubt I was a very harsh judge, as I felt sympathy for each one; respect and admiration, too. But my partner and I consulted and we tried to do a fair job. I was reminded that 40+ years ago I was the speech and drama teacher at a local junior high school and what a heart-rending job it was sometimes. I lasted two years. I marvel at teachers who never give up. Maybe that's partly because of kids like the ones I met last night. Good, scared, awkward, sensitive kids! Kids that renew my hope for the future! I am grateful for the chance to change the lens once again!

Keep breathing deeply, friends. All shall be well.