Ben's breath became shorter as nerves took control.
It was the same as last time…with one exception—Ben's eyes were calm.
'Deep breaths,' he reminded himself. He took slow inhales and exhales as everyone waited for him to start. The other students stared, some whispering amongst themselves, some shaking their heads.
"Can he really do it? We should just skip him."
"This kid's going to make a fool of himself again…"
"Public speaking isn't for everybody. People need to know their weaknesses."
Even the professor frowned, wondering if he should give Ben an excuse to avoid embarrassing himself.
Miyuki clenched her fists.
Zachary saw her concern and frowned. 'This b*tch is about to go on a date with me and she's still worried about another man? Once I get her in my bed, I'll teach her proper manners!' He leaned over to her. "Miyuki, I was thinking we'd go for Italian…Do you like Italian?"
Miyuki didn't respond.
Ben heard all the whispers. He felt all the pessimistic gazes.
He ignored everything. All he focused on was calming his body. Even though he crammed in two years of learning experience, it didn't mean he gained two years of practice experience.
His body needed time to adjust to the pressure. Even veteran speakers became nervous sometimes. Despite the chaos of his nerves, Ben didn't panic. He'd expected this and knew how to cope.
Each deep breath he took relaxed him a little more. With shaky hands, he took a sip of water as he walked around a few steps. In his head, he went over his speech. 'You know the material by heart. There's no reason to be nervous. You've got this!' He gave himself confident affirmations.
After setting down his water, Ben clenched and released his arm muscles over and over, exhausting them so they would stop shaking. He closed his eyes and visualized a successful speech. These were all techniques Ben learned to deal with nervousness.
From the perspective of the viewers, Ben was taking a long time.
Zachary leaned over to the professor and said, "Professor, we should sit him down. He won't be able to do it."
The professor pinched his eyebrows as watched Ben. He noticed the techniques Ben used, but trying to calm down and succeeding were two different things. Giving him more time wouldn't be fair to the others. 'Should I have him sit?'
Ben was still at the front of the class with his eyes closed, taking deep breaths.
The students' mutterings became more intense.
Hearing this, the professor sighed. His responsibility was to all his students. Ben couldn't have any more time. The professor leaned forward in his desk and looked at Ben with apologetic eyes. He opened his mouth to ask Ben to step down.
Right then, Ben opened his eyes!
As an expert in the field, the professor recognized the difference in those eyes–they were calm now!
Ben wasn't nervous anymore! The techniques worked!
Ben showed a calm and confident smile. 'It's now.' His gaze circled around the room, thrusting eye contact onto every single person in the audience. After he looked at everyone, the room was dead silent. No one whispered any longer.
There was something irresistible in Ben's eyes and body language. It attracted everybody's attention, stopping whatever train of thought they were on. They wanted to know what he'd do next.
When the stage was set, Ben's voice emerged. With a firm cadence, he said, "I want to ask you a question…"
The crowd hung onto his words.
"And that is…What is in your life's blueprint?"
The crowd was thoughtful.
Ben continued, "This is the most important, and crucial period of your lives. For what you do now, and what you decide now at this age may well determine which way your life shall go…
And the question is…whether you have a proper, a solid, and a sound blueprint.
And I want to suggest…some of the things that should be in your life's blueprint…"
As Ben spoke, his volume increased and his tone became stronger. He gestured with his hands for emphasis.
"Number one in your life's blueprint should be…
a deep belief…in your own dignity, your own worth, and your own somebodiness….Don't allow anybody to make you feel that you are nobody!"
The audience felt a rush! These were words that resonated with Ben and with every other young person in this room, all struggling to find their place in the world.
Three weeks ago, Ben was a nobody, a loser, beat down and cast aside by the world and everyone around him. A system fell on his head, but instead of a blessing, it was a guillotine! Did he give up? Did he renounce himself to die? No! Even if he died a week from now, he would still spend every day of his remaining life moving forward, fighting, and living! This was what he wished to communicate to each person here!
"Always feel that you count…Always feel that you have worth…and always feel that your life has ultimate significance!"
Everyone stopped breathing! Zachary's jaw dropped! Miyuki's eyes shone! The professor sat up in his chair, his wide eyes staring at Ben! All the students felt a deep urge in their chests! Which one of them hadn't been rejected? Which one of them hadn't felt alone or afraid? These words spoke to their souls!
"Secondly…in your life's blueprint, you must have, as the basic principle, the determination to achieve excellence in your various fields of endeavor.
You're going to be deciding as the days and the years unfold, what you will do in life—what your life's work will be.
And once you discover what it will be, set out to do it, and to do it well, as if God Almighty called you at this particular moment in history to do it!" Ben paused for a moment to look everyone in the eyes again.
"Be a bush if you can't be a tree!
If you can't be a highway, just be a trail!
If you can't shine like the sun, shine like a star!
For it isn't by size that you win or you fail!
Be the best of whatever you are!"
The professor gasped!
The students' hearts pumped! Their breaths short! Fists clenching!
Zachary clamped the sides of his desk, feeling the situation was spiraling out of control.
Miyuki's eyes grew red.
Which one of them wasn't uncertain about their future? Which one of them wasn't marginalized by this huge city? Which one of them hadn't watched a dream crushed by the world's weight, forcing them to pursue a more "realistic path?"
They wanted to excel! They wanted to feel important!
Ben's final act arrived.
"And finally, in your life's blueprint must be… a commitment to the eternal principles of beauty, love, and justice…
Well…life for none of us has been a crystal stair. But we must keep moving. We must keep going…
If you can't fly, run.
If you can't run…walk.
If you can't walk! Crawl!
But by all means! Keep moving!"
…
Ben finished. He'd customized and recited parts of a speech by the great Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He exhaled. It was over.
The room was silent for a long time…
Then, a student stood up. He gazed at Ben.
*Clap* *Clap* The student started clapping.
As soon as he did, everybody woke up. Soon, the entire audience was standing.
There was roaring applause!
——
*Author's note: For the people commenting that the sun is a star, when he said "If you can't shine like the sun, shine like a star!" he meant from the perspective of a human on Earth. When you look up in the sky, the sun's light is much brighter to you right? Also, I didn't write the speech. It was MLK who is a dead public figure. The original speech was much longer and I chose select parts and edited a bit.
