Memories of speaking adventures
John E. Peterson, Special to The Gazette
Thursday, October 2, 2008
THE AGING PROCESS takes many important things from us, things which then become only memories. One of the things it has taken from me is my often speaking to various groups. Retirement from teaching takes away classroom lecturing. I miss that speaking very much and have great memories of those days.
Making presentations to all sorts of groups is another area of speaking. I did much of that during my teaching days, but even more of it after the teaching days were gone. I had to give that up, too, at about the age of 82. That was because it gave me so much anxiety and stress that I could not sleep the night before. Darn! I much dislike not doing my presentations anymore, but so it goes. Age takes its toll! It would not happen, if I had my way.
Those presentation speaking adventures are much in my memory bank. Some of them are what I wish to tell you about today. I would do that, if I had my way. I do hope that my memory ramblings are of interest to some of you. I would prefer that my writings are not just a bore.
I have had a great adventure of speaking in other lands. Sweden, South Africa, two universities in Australia, Canada and the University of Canterbury in England. I was scheduled to speak at the university in Mexico City, but the students happened to go on a strike that day. That had nothing to do with me, but so it goes.
Presentations at national science organization meetings were much fun. They were always at various universities or big cities across the country. Seeing those places and making my presentations was great, but special things also happened sometimes. For example, a Nobel Laureate and I just happened to breakfast together one morning. We talked much and he was very complimentary about my research. Another time, a world-famous Stanford professor came up to me after my presentation and told me how much he always enjoyed my talk and my pictures. Big ego trips!
Some chemical and pharmaceutical companies had me make presentations to them. Always gave me big money and usually picked me up at airports in big chauffeur-driven limousines. Great memories.
During my 18 years at the University of Missouri, I often went to colleges to make presentations. Sometimes I was asked back. I recall, for example, that I went to a Catholic women’s college in the St. Louis area three times. Two other of those college presentations especially stick in my memory.
One of those was at William Jewell College in Liberty, Mo. I remember it because just as I was leaving after my talk, I was hit by a man who ran a stop sign. The radiator of my car was torn up, so I had to leave it there to be fixed, take a bus the 100 miles home and bus back two days later to get it.
I also vividly remember my visit to Principia College in an Illinois town on the Mississippi River just north of St. Louis. That is because my morning talk went well, but my afternoon presentation got poor attention. The reason was that we had just heard at noon that President Kennedy had been shot. That event, understandably, caught more attention than did my speaking.
Here in Emporia, I did many, many programs for the Learning Connection. I will mention just three of that multitude of memories. One was talk and pictures about Australia shortly after we had been there for three months. It was in the Memorial Union. They had it set up for 50-60 people. Well over a hundred came. Lots more chairs were brought in and many people even had to stand up. Being such an attraction is a powerful memory.
The second memory I will tell you about was the opposite. It too, was in the Union. Only two people came, a man and wife. They had driven about 25 miles, though, so I went ahead with the presentation. Just the three of us.
The third experience I shall mention was this. I was invited out to the Presbyterian Manor four times each year for the first 10 years of its existence. I never repeated a presentation. I had to tell you that because it indicates how many slide-illustrated topics I had. Something like 50,000 slides of all sorts of things taken all over the world.
I went to most of the small towns around here, some several times. Always fun. At Osage City one afternoon, for example, there was an audience of some 200 people. I had been told they would have a projector and a screen. They did, but it was a movie projector. I ran out to my car to bring in my own slide projector.
At a luncheon presentation at Rossville, they also said they would have a projector set up. They did, but it was a top-loading one and my slides were all in a circular tray. I went to the car and got my own again. So it goes.
Lots of other places and memories. Most of our Emporia grade schools and several in other towns. Those second and third grade kids are the most exciting audiences. And I did my Fabulous Fungi six times in one day at the high school. Lost of service clubs in Emporia and other towns. The 75th anniversary of the Hamilton Ladies Club. An annual Coffey County Chamber of Commerce dinner. An on and on. Several colleges and community colleges.
I have many other speaking memories, just masses of them actually, but I have given you enough. I would prefer not to bore you, if I had my way.
Comments
Post a comment
We allow registered users to post comments on this Web site. Our goal with this feature is to encourage thoughtful discussions about the news stories. Using the comment feature to make random attacks on people is not acceptable. Emporiagazette.com neither endorses nor guarantees the accuracy of any user contribution. Responsibility for what is posted or contributed to this site is the sole responsibility of each user. To learn more about our posting policies please read our User Poster Agreement Policy.
(Requires free registration.)