Who knew 24 fellows could stir a curiosity so strong that I want to have a cup of joe or a mocktail/cocktail with each of them to get to know them better?
Through our “personal story” assignment, I’ve learned that one fellow and a police officer watched his vehicle that was stuck on railroad tracks became shrapnel when a moving train struck his car.
We learned how one fellow was 10-years old when asked to testify against her father, yet loved her one-eyed dad through prison bars.
A classmate shared a favorite 1961 “Mr. Rogers Neighborhood” episode to illustrate how public swimming pools became integrated.
We listened to how one senior fellow intentionally planned to derail 19 years of sobriety but instead celebrates 31 years thanks to an unassuming angel-in-disguise.
My revelation? I shared a 30-year “family secret” that made me feel insecure, unloved, and rejected whenever I reflected on that time and it had nothing to do with something I had done—real or imagined—until I asked my parents directly.
The human connection through the mundane, the unbelievable, the strength, the weakness.
Each of us is an encyclopedia of stories that are ours to share if we embrace three things: the discomfort and awkwardness of public speaking, our vulnerability, and the knowledge that we are loved by the listeners after we speak the final word.
Ready for that beverage?
(Cic is fourth from the right in the picture at the top of the post with fellow fellows.)
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Cic Cicolello is a graduate of Tempe Leadership, Valley Leadership, and is a former Honorary Squadron Commander at Luke AFB. She served on various boards of Valley-area nonprofits for almost twenty years before she retired. She has been a Toastmaster since 2014 and is currently a fellow at The Storytelling Institute/South Mountain Community College.
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