I was just getting my start in Original Oratory around the same time as the Lillehammer Olympics. That year I developed a whole new appreciation and empathy for the figure skaters. On the face of it, oratory and figure skating are entirely different skill sets, but the end goal of both is the same: an incredibly polished performance that looks absolutely effortless.
And in both, should you happen to make a mistake early on, you know you're done, you know you've shot your chance at the gold, and all you really want to do is sit down right then and there and cry. But you can't - you have to keep going and finish the speech, finish the program, as flawlessly as possible. You have to keep going and still make it all look as effortless as possible, even though your mind is now raging in replay mode, trying to figure out where you went wrong, cursing your stupidity, paranoid that you'll stumble again.
So, here's hoping that none of the skaters tonight have to live through that, because it's an awful feeling. May all their programs go off without a hitch, and may the best performance win! :)
No comments:
Post a Comment