Normally, on Wednesdays from twelve to two, I go to Capital City Toastmasters and then to lunch with some of the members.  That’s been my routine for about four years now.  But for the last month, that simply hasn’t happened.  There was too much going on – too many deadlines and schedules and demands – and my attendance plummeted.  Today, though the deadlines and schedules and demands remained, I made myself walk away from my desk and attend the meeting.  And I’m so glad I did.

Had I not gone, I would have missed my friend Jennifer give a funny and thoughtful speech about the naming of genes.  I would have missed Katie’s icebreaker that was delivered in the form of a letter  – an idea that I so wish I had come up with myself.  I would have missed Thao give her icebreaker on her photography and how she found her thing by being herself and doing what she loved.  I would have missed Vince as a first time Toastmaster declare Shane as our favorite former pastor, despite Stuart, another former pastor, being in attendance.  I would have missed Shane’s puppet tribute to Amy and Heather during the general evaluation.  I would have missed Walter’s joke about being “borderline white trash” and Keith’s quick comeback about Walter not being “borderline.”  I would have missed Stuart’s incredible humor with both the superhero intro and Winnie the Pooh closing.  I would have missed so much.

I love my club and the people in it.  I love them every time I go.

I can’t recreate the entire meeting, but I can leave you with this.

What do John the Baptist and Winnie the Pooh have in common? [think think think]  They have the same middle name.  Padum pum.