Resilience, Glory of God and What's in a name? a morning of glimmer at EarlyBirds

Dear Members, Guests and Friends,

We inducted our returning TM Christine formally into our Club.  Welcome back, Christine!

TM Marie launched us on a glimmer of resilience.  We discovered that...

* TM Christine's heroic effort consisted of getting a degree in Oxford at midlife while doing standup comedy with a British accent.

* TN The Tom is "the comeback kid" - overcame a health hardship and turned into a fish in a glimmering pond.

* TM Aleta overcomes adversity day by day, step by step, shovel by shovel, while anticipating a visit from the glimmering Samaritan's Purse.  She Won Best Table Topics Award.

* TM Cory is mastering rising above it, talking when the mind goes blank while envisioning TM Jorge's AH, ER, YOU KNOW screen flashing in his mind's eye.

* Guest Christina converts triggers into glimmers of the day and her family, work and trip to Fairfax and Toronto rank in top relevancy.

* TM Randolph's faith gets him through the challenges of daily life with an unwavering moral code.

* TM Jose likens his life to a chu-chu train with different stops for different folks and is managing the Reservations Desk for visiting friends at his home in Javea, Spain.

Along came our prepared speeches...

* TM BeckyJo regaled us with a sailor's tale of triumph over adversity while proclaiming The Glory of God.  She Won Best Speaker Award.

* I, Ana, revealed the little-known story of the origin of our city's name, tracing it back to wee William Wallace, aka Braveheart, aka Mel Gibson,  glimmering hero of the Scots.

TM Jose performed as first-time General Evaluator and glimmered steadily throughout...

* TM Cory asked TM BeckyJo to clarify if Boston Whaler and Laser is a marine mammal with a Boston accent and having laser cataract surgery.  He Won Best Evaluator Award.

* TM Randolph asked that for the love of Scots, I repeat the speech with a wee bit of humor added to it.

The Word of the Day was

GLIMMER,

noun - a faint or unsteady light

verb - shine faintly or unsteadily

Example: To identify your glimmers, pay attention to your senses, notice what brings you a sense of peace or joy, and reflect on activities that make you feel energized and alive.   So there....

Here is the link to the recording:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmMBSIjcL5U

See you next week at Inauguration!  Dress code:  pyjama pants and a chic top will do!

Ana 

VP Education

First liners, Core Strength and Influencers - a curated meeting of Early Birds!

Dear Members, Guests and Friends,

TM BeckyJo gave us intriguing literary first liners.  We soon discovered that...

* TM Gail is living in the best of times and the worst of times but through it all we need to help and serve each other.

* DTM Mary Helen wishes her benign, frail grandmother had exploded and been a stronger role model in her life...

* TM Randolph really envisioned his imaginary twin children meeting up with dragons in the vegetable garden.  He Won Best Table Topics Award.

* TM David segued impeccably from getting the willies to living in the best of times and the worst of times.  Well done, TM David!

* TM Jorge agrees that families are not uniformly unhappy and parents are responsible for making a positive or negative impact on their kids.

* I, Ana, knew that my topic came from a bright cold day somewhere in Europe because it used the ever-confusing military time.

We had (2) outstanding prepared speeches...

* TM Jose educated us about Pilates, formerly known as contrology but too controlling of a term to prevail and reform the core of your inner sanctum.

* TM Marie talked about the fleeting fame of influencers and the lasting community of true world restoration.  She Won Best Speaker Award.  Note: Her story is from The Birthday of the World by Rachel Naomi Remen.

Along came evaluations...

* TM David praised TM Jose for his educational, masterful speech delivered in a smooth soothing voice.  TM David may heed the call to action and sign up for concentration, control and breathing.  Go Pilates!  He Won Best Evaluator Award.

* TM Randolph admitted TM Marie's speech captivated him from the start and this will be a praiseful evaluation, and he kept his word!

The Word of the Day was

CURATE, verb

To select the best or most appropriate for presentation.

Example:  It is wise to curate our clutter  when we are planning to move.

Here's the link to the recording:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FHTN4B6m2I

See you next week!

Ana I

Curated Recap Writer

Father's Day, Small Claims Case and Dad Collection - no minutia at EarlyBirds!

Dear Members, Guests and Friends,

I started us off on Father's Day-related Table Topics....

* TM Marie will accommodate her wonderful husband's request for Father's Day by gifting him a day of peace and quiet1

* TM Jose declared himself the Great White Hunter of pesky mosquitoes on Spain's Father's Day (also his Saint's Day), and US Father's Day.  He enjoys every celebration!

* TM David reminisced about his own father, an intelligent, clever, compassionate, old-school Father who was born in Martinique.

* TM Randolph cannot pinpoint a memorable Father's Day because they are all memorable - and he has learned not to treat his children's problems as minutiae.  He Won Best Table Topics Award.

We then had prepared speeches...

* TM David recounted a landlord-renter small claims case he is currently experiencing where he wants to establish fairness, clarity and justice.  He Won Best Speaker Award.

* TM Christine shared her Dad Collection - men who were father figures to her in assorted ways - by answering her questions "Do I have value?" and "Am I loved?" 

As far as evaluations went...

* TM BeckyJo gave very helpful tips to TM David about Florida laws and how to masterfully present his case to the judge.  She Won Best Evaluator Award.

* TM Randolph praised TM Christine for her touching speech and encouraged her to make more eye contact with her audience.

The Word of the Day was

MINUTIA, noun

A small or minor detail

Example  The important things in life are usually mistakenly considered minutae.

Here's the link to the recording:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2OdYHshjJOw

Our new officers will be installed in early July by the incoming Area Director.

Sargeant-at-Arms:  Veronica

President: BeckyJo 

Immediate Past President: Aleta

VP Education: Ana

Treasurer: Marie 

Secretary: The Tom

VP Membership: Cory

VP Public Relations: David

See you next week!

Ana

Recap Writer

June, The Elks Rest, A Commonplace Book - a tech-risible morning at EarlyBirds!

Dear Members, Guests and Friends,

TM Aleta led us in a June series of Table Topics.  We found out that...

* TM Jose is aka Mr. Chocolate for his all-time favorite ice cream flavor.... He loves "polos" - chocolate ice cream on a stick that gives you both mobility and edibility.  He Won Best Table Topics Award.

* TM Veronica watched the Marilyn Monroe documentary and feels compassion for such a beautiful person - inside and out- who lived such a tragic life.  Had she avoided drugs and alcohol, who knows? She would perhaps be celebrating her 100th birthday next year!

* TM Pam has never been to a professional tennis match but her kids were once coached by Jimmy Evert and they didn't even know it!

* TM BeckyJo had a handsome tennis coach in Vancouver hired by her mother who really enjoyed male eye candy... BeckyJo ran marathons on Summer Solstice Day, just so you know....

* TM Gail has a special flag from her son which she will keep forever and she recalls  displaying all United Nations flags as a school project in the 6th grade.

* TM Christine could not think of Dad jokes but she is an avid tennis fan and has watched many professional matches.

* Guest Kris has no idea why there are so many June weddings - all she knows is she's having a birthday coming up... First things first!

* TM David has no objection to girls named June but his favorite girl's name is Catherine with a French accent.  Ohlala....!

Along came the prepared speeches...

* I, Ana, talked about a fascinating piece of Fort Lauderdale history:  The Elks Lodge, host venue of many memorable events, watering hole of many legendary celebrities and soon to be reopening after a long legal battle.

* TM The Tom regaled us with a helpful speech about A Commonplace Book, where one keeps quotable quotes, ideas for speeches and other sources for speech topics.  He Won Best Speaker Award.

As far as evaluations go...

* TM David enjoyed my speech and suggested I use more vocal variety, hand gestures, and introduce exciting stories into the speech that will captivate the audience.  He Won Best Evaluator Award.

* TM Christine kindly asked TM The Tom to step out of the closet - or at least blur it - or the audience starts to make mental grocery lists.  She enjoyed the purpose of the speech - to give practical tips to the rest of us to find topics for speeches.

The Word of the Day was

RISIBLE, adj.

capable of laughing, disposed to laugh

Example:  Today's meeting was chock-full of risible technical bumps; however, we pulled ourselves together and risibly figured them out.  Go EarlyBirds Learning Lab!

The link to the recording is here (thank you Jose!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BMtz1NV_PQ

See you next week!

Ana I.

Risible Recap Writer