People love big things – big houses, big
cars and big bikes. They also love things big – big hair, big bling and big
bank balances. And let’s not forget what they say about men with big shoes –
they have big feet and buying shoes for them is a big problem!!! But seriously,
today it’s all about everything being supersized. So much so that even talk is
big! I mean in this day and age you can’t go too long without hearing someone
boast, exaggerate and even name-drop. It’s just become a part of who we are and
every now and again, you’ll find big talkers in competition with one another.
When such situations and people present themselves, I always find it better to
walk away. But every once in a while I find myself on the better side of big
talk and I’m grateful for it…
Now anyone who knows me will know that I
love to talk! I’m a self-proclaimed chatter box and it was only a matter of
time before I turned that to my advantage and made it my source of work. Today
I enjoy the role of both radio host and emcee, amongst other things, but that
doesn’t mean I know it all. Like someone once told me, you never stop learning
until you die, and even then it’s another journey of discovery. So you can
imagine my surprise when I received a call and got invited to St. Xavier’s
College, Mapusa, to deliver a talk on careers in talking! I actually had to
stop and wonder if I’d even be able to do it. You see, as a radio host or
emcee, one is never the focus of attention – it’s either the music or the bride
and groom or the event on the whole. At best, in times like this, one is only
filler, background noise, linking everything else together. So the thought of
being the centre of attention for a few hours was a tad unnerving!
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But in keeping with my motto of trying
everything at least once, I swallowed the lump in my throat and agreed. So on
the last day of August, I made my way to the college campus to give my ‘big
talk’ and was met by three lovely people – Clive, Desmona and their professor,
Prema. They immediately put me at ease with their warmth and welcoming natures
and for a few minutes I thought “This is going to be just fine!” Then I walked
into what they described as a “small room” and found myself face to face with a
big bunch of people. Those fine thoughts? Well, they flew straight out the
window and left me to my own quaky devices and I could do nothing but smile as
I made my way to the front of the room.
While Desmona took to the mike to introduce
me, I remember thinking, “Hmmmmm. This could go either of three ways – good,
bad or ugly. What do I do?” And then I recalled Prema whispering in my ear as
we’d entered, “They all came to see, meet and talk to you!” So I decided to be
my goofy, silly, embarrassing self and just go with it. Of course, it also
helped that the ice was broken when Desmona listed one of my passions as
hugging! From that point on, there was no looking back! The afternoon whizzed
by in a flurry of questions, answers, laughter, anecdotes, songs, selfies and
yes, hugs! I came away feeling refreshed, happy and more in love with the
choices I’d made. For if I’d gone down the path of a regular 9 to 5 job, I
would never have found myself in such situations where I was being given the
opportunity to share what little I knew while meeting and learning from such
amazing people; people with big hearts, big smiles, big hugs and big love! And
I came away thinking, That’s all the big we need!
