Personal Narrative: When The Hive Of Bees

Whoever it was who first thought that being nervous felt like having butterflies in your stomach was dead wrong- if anything, being nervous feels like you’ve swallowed an entire hive of bees, and all the way through elementary and middle school nothing got those bees going like public speaking. Anytime I had to present in class, I’d spend the night before running through every possible catastrophe that could occur; what if my nose starts bleeding, or I forget what I have to say, or which class I’m in? No scenario was too improbable, ranging from the mundane (speaking too quietly) to the stuff of nightmares (melting into a puddle). My only hope was that my teacher would be out sick, but inevitably I’d end up standing in front of a blurry blob
of my classmates- blurry because I don’t present with my glasses on (so as to not see the grimaces on everyone’s faces). With my note cards in hand, I would stand and deliver a speech made up of seismic stuttering, shaking like a maraca in the hands of a kindergartener, and abnormal squinting when I realized I couldn’t read my presentation without my glasses. It was freshman year before I’d had enough- leaping headfirst, I joined our school’s speech and debate club. I became an impromptu speaker, making up four-minute speeches on the spot, and eventually I tamed the bees in my stomach. Since joining speech and debate, I’ve participated in multiple tournaments including Holly Fest, and now I’m one of the captains of our team. Joining speech shoved me out of my comfort zone and in the process I didn’t just become a better speaker- I made some of the closest friends I’ve ever had and became a more confident person.