Narrative Speech

A TALE OF TWO FROGS This story is about two CCP students, much like yourselves.Like you, they work hard, play hard, and are rooting for the Eagles.Unlike you, though, they’re green—because they’re frogs. Well, these two frogs were walking down Spring Garden St., one fine April afternoon. They were looking for a place to get a free lunch. They passed by the two Pizza shops, and the Chinese restaurant, and finally found themselves in the kitchen of the diner at 16th St.What luck—there was an empty kitchen and a huge pail of ice cold milk. Carefully they perched on the pail’s side and drank.But they weren’t careful enough—and they both fell in to this deep pail of ice cold milk.They struggled and struggled and they couldn’t get a grip on the slippery pail. It looked really bad for our two frogs. One frog was sure it was the end. He said, “O let’s give up—I’m so tired from treading milk, my flippers are exhausted, and what’s the point? We’re going to die anyway?”  They other frog wasn’t having any of it: She said, “Come on, now, just keep trying. You can do it.” The first frog said, “No we can’t do it—we’re going to drown—it’s hopeless.” The other frog said, “Come on now, you can do it—just don’t give up.” And something strange started to happen-- their paddling became less frantic.Why?Because as they struggled and struggled, the milk turned to butter---and the frogs climbed atop the churned butter, out of the pail, out of the restaurant, and hopped back to school, where they took showers in the gym. What’s the point of the story? Don’t give up. NO matter how hopeless things may seem, you never know from where you’ll get a leg up.

 

HEALTH AND HEALING AT YOUR FINGERTIPS Throw out the bottles and boxes of drugs in your house. A new theory suggests that medicine could be bad for your health, which should at least come as good news to people who cannot afford to buy expensive medicine. However, it is a blow to the medicine industry, and an even bigger blow to our confidence in the progress of science. This new theory argues that healing is at our fingertips: we can be healthy by doing Reiki on a regular basis. Supporters of medical treatment argue that medicine should be trusted since it is effective and scientifically proven. They say that there is no need for spiritual methods such as Reiki, Yoga, Tai Chi. These waste our time, something which is quite precious in our material world. There is medicine that can kill our pain, x-rays that show us our fractured bones or MRI that scans our brain for tumors. We must admit that these methods are very effective in the examples that they provide. However, there are some “every day complaints” such as back pains, headaches, insomnia, which are treated currently with medicine. When you have a headache, you take an Aspirin, or Vermidon, when you cannot sleep, you take Xanax without thinking of the side effects of these. When you use these pills for a long period, you become addicted to them; you cannot sleep without them. We pay huge amounts of money and become addicted instead of getting better. How about a safer and more economical way of healing? When doing Reiki to yourself, you do not need anything except your energy so it is very economical. As for its history, it was discovered in Japan in the early 1900s and its popularity has spread particularly throughout America and Western Europe.  In quantum physics, energy is recognized as the fundamental substance of which the universe is composed. Reiki depends on the energy within our bodies. It is a simple and effective way of restoring the energy flow. There are no side effects and it is scientifically explained. Opponents of alternative healing methods also claim that serious illnesses such as HIV/AIDS and cancer cannot be treated without drugs. They think so because these patients spend the rest of their lives in the hospital taking medicine. How can Reiki make these people healthy again? It is very unfortunate that these patients have to live in the hospital losing their hair because of chemotherapy, losing weight because of the side effects of the medicine they take. Actually, it is common knowledge that except for when the cancer is diagnosed at an early stage, drugs also cannot treat AIDS or cancer. Most of the medicinethese patients use are to ease their pain and their sufferings because of the medical treatment they undergo. Instead of drugs which are expensive and have many side effects, you can use your energy to overcome the hardships of life, find an emotional balance, leave the stress of everyday life and let go of the everyday worries. Most of the chronic conditions such as eczema or migraine are known to have causes such as poor diet and stress. Deep-rooted anger or other strong emotions can contribute to viral infections as well. Since balancing our emotions and controlling our thoughts are very important for our well-being, we should definitely start learning Reiki and avoid illnesses before it is too late.    Some people may still maintain that in our material world, everything depends on time. It is even “lacking time” that causes much of the stress that leads to the illnesses we mentioned. How would it be possible to find time to do Reiki to ourselves and the people around us when we cannot even find time to go to the theater? This is one good thing about Reiki; it does not require more than 15 minutes of our time. There is no need for changing clothes or special equipment. It is a wonderfully simple healing art, an effective method of relaxation and stress-relief. Most important of all, it is less time consuming than medicine if we think of all the time we spend taking medicine for some complaints and taking some more for the side effects as well.Having said these, resistance to Reiki would be quite illogical. Reiki is natural and drug-free. What is more, it is easy to learn by anyone, regardless of age and experience. It can be used anywhere, anytime. It also enhances physical, mental, emotional and spiritual well-being and the benefits last a lifetime. It is definitely high time to get away from the drug boxes we store in our drug cabinet!

Persuasive Speech

Topic:  Please Help Keep the World Safe

SP: I want to actuate you to support banning guns 

Thesis: We should oppose gun ownership because guns are a weapon of violence and they increase the

number of children who die each year which in turn makes people blind to the fact they are killing their

own children.

Introduction: Question: How many of you think guns are necessary to protect yourself? Would you feel

the same way if you knew how often guns kill children? I don't think so! Magazines usually tell people

how beautiful and powerful guns are, and never mention how many children get hurt by guns everyday.

But I am here to ask all of you to oppose gun ownership because the fact is that guns are a weapon of

violence, they take more lives away every year, and they make people blind to the fact they are killing

their own children.

I. Reason one: Having guns around the house creates the opportunity for lethal violence.

            A.      People with guns who have unstable feelings or tempers can lead to violent

consequences very easily.

1.     My experience in a Chinese restaurant. (Explain)

                                  2.     A friend of my father shot his wife because of a simple argument.

II. Reason two: Guns pose such a significant risk to children.

             A.     Thousands of children dying by the gunfire each year.

                            1.     Statistic: Eight children every day; and more than 50 children

every week were killed by the gunfire. And every year, at least 4 to 5 times as many kids

and teens suffer from non-fatal firearm injuries. 

                                    (Children's Defense Fund and National Center for Health

Statistics)

                             2.     Do we really need guns in our society?

B.     The rate of firearm deaths of children 0-14 years old is nearly twelve times higher in the

U.S than in 25 other developed nations combined.

1.    Statistic: In one year, firearms killed no children in Japan, 19 in Great Britain, 

                                           57 in Germany, 109 in France, 153 in Canada,  and 5,285 in the

United States.  

                                         (National Center for Health Statistics, 1997)

                                    2.    According to a study led by Matthew Miller found that in states where

more

                                           guns are available, children are more likely to be victims of firearm-

related deaths.

a.    Children aged 5 to 14 living in one of the five high-gun states were twice 

                                                           as likely to commit suicide or to be murdered, three times as

likely to die 

                                                           from firearm homicide, seven times as likely to die from

firearm suicide,

and 16 times as likely to die from a firearm-related accident.

The study suggests the higher death rates are largely related to gun

availability and are not due to difference in levels of poverty, education, 

                                                           or  urbanization in these states. (Humphries as cited in

Miller study, p. 1)

b.     People kill people with the use of guns

III. Reason three: Guns create more family tragedies.

             A.       Life can be taken very easily by improper use of firearms 

                            1.      Quote: "Kalie was my baby sister, she loved pink. We were

playing with her dolls. 

                                     I found a gun in the drawer.  It went off. I made Kalie go away. I

hate me.

" (Atwan, America Now, 2003. Page 260)

B.       People might think that they can keep their weapons properly, but if there are no guns at

all, there would be no chance of any gun-related  accidents.

C.       Just think of Columbine High School and the senseless shootings there and all the families

impacted by that tragedy.

Conclusion: Bullets cannot be taken back, and the profit of firearm businesses cannot buy the

lives that have been taken by firearms; therefore, we need to oppose gun ownership. I challenge

you, the audience, to oppose gun ownership and save a life!

Coping with Depression

Depression is a psychological state that is hard to cure, hard to live with, and hard to endure. A depressed person lives in a nightmarish world, darkened by pessimism and dulled by

unwillingness to act. This devastating and destructive state has a negative impact on the individual. It drains energy, evaporates optimism and enthusiasm, and paralyzes hope. It distorts

the world and substantially reduces the pleasure of living. It may lead to repetitive suicidal thoughts that can end in self-destruction. I have consulted psychological literature to give you

some tips how develop a step-by-step program to overcome depression. 

People suffer from depression for many reasons. They become depressed when all they do seems to become a failure. They get worried about their inability to realize their plans. They get shelled in loneliness. They get nervous and easily irritated. They find their lives unstable and hopeless. They lack safety and become vulnerable to outside influences. Depression is a hazardous state,

especially when you allow it to invade your body and mind. As soon as you realize that something is wrong with your state of mind, turn to help without hesitation. 

Now, I will give you some anti-depression tips. First of all, stay focused on what you are doing. Start with a small goal and fulfill it: go to a shop, take a short walk, or make a telephone call.

Just start taking action and stick to doing it. Second, develop supportive relationship, turning to people who love you and whom you love. Refrain from retreating into yourself, sharing a meal,

emailing, accompanying your friend to the movies, confide in a counselor or clergy member. Third, get interested in your own life. For this, have eight hours of sleep, practice relaxation

techniques, and go easy on yourself. Why not to practice yoga or tai chi? Why not to introduce a meditative element to your life? Fourth, get regular exercise. Fifth, eat healthy food. Sixth, avoid

negative thinking and negative emotions. Finally, ask for help if you cannot overcome your depression without outside aid.

Now, you must embark on the road to depression recovery. Remember: action is the best anti-depressant for you. Look at the world from a new perspective: integrate into it on equal terms.

Life is given only once, and you have no time to waste it. Not a single moment to spare! As soon as the world starts changing, you will keep a stronger touch with it. You will realize that inward problems are mainly our own creations, our own illusions, our own misunderstandings. Share

your doubts with the world, and you be understood in return. It is easiest to shut your heart and pretend that loneliness is desirable. A white lie! Out of depression - to communicate with people

- to establish relationships - and depression will quietly go away! I do not think it will be welcomed again!