In a season of gift giving, I gratefully reflect upon
people and experiences that are gifts I have received
or that I've been blessed to give.
Have you ever thought what a great gift it is to express oneself. We sometime take this for granted and in doing so neglect to unpackage and cultivate this gift in our lives. We each have a story to tell. Especially if our story has at some point intersected with His story, yes, the good news of Jesus. His story connects so many of us in ways we couldn't even imagine. That's how the gift of public speaking was first introduced to me.
You see it was an invite to be a part of a homeschooling speech tournament at Providence College about 20 years ago. A fellow disciple of Christ encouraged two young adults that were dating (my wife now and myself) to volunteer and invest a day in evaluating students' presentations. What an eye-opening experience. I was extremely impressed not just with the caliber of these dramatic monologues, poetry recitations and storytelling but the confidence of character and politeness of the majority of those participating. These weren't 'born inspirational speakers' but ordinary students who together built upon principles they were learning in their communication chapters to develop into extraordinary citizens in society with a voice.
Fast forward 20 some years to another invite. This time the young adults are middle age with homeschooling children of their own. In our home we were doing our best to choose the right curriculum, revise, carefully select extracurricular activities, music and language classes and keep physically fit. The invite was to join "RI HOPE", the local chapter of the Institute for Cultural Communicators. This is similar to the organization we had volunteered for 20 years earlier.
After the first week in we could see potential within our children. Surprisingly the dynamic of being a part of this community countered the hesitancy that adolescents have to participate. The attitude of "we are all in it together" combined with invested parents and goal setting creates momentum in our shared responsibilities and preparation for tournaments.
The portfolio program (self-reflection, Biblical insight on identity, principles of communication) warm up (sometimes silly out of the box stretches and vocal exercises), devotionals (God's Word to center our thoughts) encouraging coaches (parents and alumni) and peer evaluations create a balanced and welcoming atmosphere for any child to flourish.
While personalities are different and require different approaches, our team of coaches, and student leaders at RI HOPE intentionally meet the student where they are. Incentive and encouragement to level up are in place, however not pressured. I've witnessed individuals step up to challenges, encourage others and grow in character as they go at their own pace in a life-giving community.
Read more of Travis's observations in the second part to this blog post.
Are you curious about the life-giving community?
Come visit an RI HOPE Chapter meeting.
We meet from 2:00 - 4:00 at Frenchtown Church in East Greenwich
every Friday during the school year.
Contact Samantha.Short@ICCinc.org today.