The Fermoy Toastmasters Club held its first ever meeting at the Education Centre on the evening of Tuesday, February 10^th. We made our way through the wide entrance hallway and were warmly greeted by the Director of this fine facility,

 

Mr. Gus Kelleher, who bid us welcome and hoped that we would enjoy our evening there. The meeting room was intimate, comfortable and brightly lit and proceedings were soon called to order by our honoured President, Mary Whelan, who expressed pleasure on behalf of us all to be here and then handed control of the meeting to the Toastmaster or chairman for the occasion, the vastly experienced, witty and ever amiable John Quirke who spoke very nicely on the very good attendance and very full programme to which we could all look forward.

Then it was straightaway into the first round of topics with David Walsh who as always brought a wining relaxed style and lightness of touch to this vital role that always makes the atmosphere of ever good and memorably enjoyable meeting. Members are asked to speak without prior notice on a subject for some two minutes with other participants following on for one minute add-ons. Of course, the first respondent always faces the greatest challenge by having to speak off the cuff thinking quickly and sharing ideas that crystallise with amazing swiftness. It is a wonderful mental exercise and stimulus. The add-on contributors have a little more time to think yet their contribution too is so vital for a topic that evokes only one response from the individual first asked – no matter how good it may have been – will invariably fall a little flat unless you have add-ons by which new ideas and original insights are released and tossed around the room in a beautiful cocktail of thoughtful words, of humour and wit and creative energy. For everyone has something to say and something new and fresh to give and share with their fellows.

I cannot begin to convey the true richness and variety of this or any other great topics session. It is something that no one can do alone for this is a social pleasure that can only be enjoyed in a roomful of friends gathered to celebrate the joy of communication with conviviality, eagerness and good cheer, a wonderful example of how a pleasure shared is a happiness vastly increased.

We then had the pleasure of listening to three delightful speeches. One of our new members, Peggy O’Donovan, told us of the history of tobacco smoking, tracing its origins across many centuries and following its source to the New World in places such as the Carolinas and Kentucky as well as its ever changing place in popular culture, with the celebration of the cigarette as something glamorous and sophisticated in the Hollywood movies of the 1950s and 1950s, to its current pariah status in the light of the overwhelming weight of evidence of the harmful effects of smoking on human health. Peggy’s presentation was ever so well-researched, thoughtful, concise and informative in a gentle style that underlined the substance of the message.

Our second speech of the evening was from Kieran Connolly who brought us on a journey of discovery into the murky, mysterious but fascinating world of the intestinal tract. With the catchy title of ‘Forty Million Flies Can’t Be Wrong’, the unglamorous but vital role of this complex region of the body was compellingly illuminated and especially the crucial role of bacteria in the digestion process. Attention was brought to the use of antibiotics which while eliminating the harmful bacteria also destroy the benign varieties that we need for healthy living. Their disappearance can lead to undigested food fragments passing through the intestinal wall into the bloodstream giving rise to serious illness. Kieran underlined the need to take pro-biotic drinks while taking a course of antibiotics to restore the natural balance. Moreover a hale and hearty intestine means not only a healthy body but a keen and vigorous mind also, throwing a new light on the expression ‘having a good gut feeling’. Told with great candour and wit, Kieran’s presentation gave us a better and clearer understanding of all those complex internal processes that make us tick and which allow us to lead full and active lives.

Then Frank O’Driscoll, with the adroit use of the flip-chart, held out the vision of The Fair Society, drawing attention to the many cruelly and unjustly mistreated victims of the recent years of economic recession as exemplified by the cutting of the blind pension and children with special needs denied their entitlement to medical cards. He contrasted this with the interaction between government and powerful sectional interest groups where all too often resources are divvied out to the advantage of the privileged and well-connected while those most in need are further neglected and excluded. Much of this can be attributed to the social composition of the political class where there is an unhealthy over-representation of those of a professional background and a marked absence of people working in industry or the retail sector, still less of the poor and marginalised. This marked bias has skewered our political system so that it lamentably fails to meet the needs of ordinary people struggling to survive in favour of the well-to-do.  Given in Frank’s inimitable warm and affable approach, his speech was all the more thought-provoking for that.

     After helpful and positive feedback from evaluators Eilis Ui Bhriain, Jerry Hennessy and Padraig Murphy and a fine general evaluation by Fanahan Colbert, our evening concluded with our looking forward to our next meeting that will be held at the Fermoy Youth Centre on Tuesday evening next, February 24^th, at 8.15 pm. We look forward to seeing you. For further information, please contact Fanahan Colbert at 086 8239007 or Kevin Walsh at 058 60100 or log on totoastmastersfermoy.com