I had a great time in a public speaking training seminar with fellow ToastMasters from District 57. It was a awesome – 5 hours, full of energy, lots of valuable knowledge sharing and tons of fun. I love it, and here’s the moment that made me moved and think.

Tevis, our host, called for two people to come to stage and each hold a knife towards an apple. I was confused – “apple appetizer”? Well, each of them cut the apple from the middle – not the usual way – they put the apples down to the side first and then cut them. After that, both of them held the halved-apple to us (see picture above) – “There’s a star inside the apple!”

Wow!

I never noticed that before. I eat an apple almost every day, and never even pay attention to them – they are just another kind of ordinary fruit, aren’t they?! I cut them into pieces and ate without a thought. However, I started to respect them when I saw the stars.

“You know what,” said Tevis, “Sometimes you just need to view yourself from a different perspective, discover a little more and you will find the great potential within yourself. You can be a star!”

We cannot help applauding – for the apples, and for ourselves.

It’s true. I believe anyone in this world has some great potential, like the “stars” in apples – really, anyone can succeed. It’s just a matter of time and efforts to explore our potentials, dig them out and let them explode. Sometimes we can feel frustrated about ourselves – we make stupid mistakes, we fail and others laugh at us. But never lose hope. Never forget there is a “star” deep inside us – we’re great. With this belief, we are on the way to have stronger minds, enjoy life and become better “ourselves”.

Apples, you gave me a great lesson!