19th Place Winner, 2017 National Public Speaking Competition, Jacinda Tsen, River Valley High School
Summary
TLDRIn this heartfelt speech, Jacinda reflects on the true meaning of love, moving beyond common perceptions of affection and romance. She shares powerful examples, illustrating that love is patience, kindness, bravery, and selflessness. From waiting for loved ones and supporting family members to helping strangers and facing personal fears, love is portrayed as a complex, courageous force that drives people to go beyond themselves. Jacinda concludes that love is what transforms ordinary actions into extraordinary virtues, making the world a better place.
Takeaways
- ❤️ Love is multifaceted: It's not just about sweet words or affectionate gestures, but a complex range of emotions and actions.
- 🌟 Love is patience: It involves waiting for loved ones, understanding their needs, and supporting them in their endeavors.
- 🤗 Love is kindness: Small acts of kindness, like offering a tissue or helping a neighbor, are expressions of love.
- 👨👩👧👦 Love is support: It's about being there for family members, even when it's inconvenient or requires personal sacrifice.
- 🕰️ Love is waiting: It's the willingness to wait for the right moment or for someone to be ready, despite personal impatience.
- 👶 Love is nurturing: It includes caring for children and helping them grow and develop at their own pace.
- 👵 Love is assistance: Assisting the elderly and those in need is a demonstration of love and compassion.
- 🌧️ Love is bravery: It can involve doing things that scare you, like braving the rain or climbing a ladder, for the sake of others.
- 🍲 Love is care: It's shown through actions like cooking for a sick family member, ensuring their comfort and well-being.
- 🌟 Love is transformative: It has the power to make ordinary people do extraordinary things for the sake of others' happiness and health.
Q & A
What is the main theme of the speech?
-The main theme of the speech is the concept of love and its various forms, illustrating that love is not just about romantic gestures but encompasses patience, kindness, selflessness, and bravery.
How does the speaker's perception of love change over time?
-The speaker initially thought love was about saying 'I love you,' hugs, and kisses. However, as they matured, they realized that love is more about actions such as patience, waiting, helping others, and making sacrifices.
What example does the speaker give to demonstrate love as patience?
-The speaker describes waiting for a partner who is a surgeon, understanding that they may spend more time on their career than on the relationship, but still waiting for them to spend time together.
How does the speaker describe love as kindness?
-The speaker describes kindness as offering a tissue to a crying woman on the bus, even though they have social anxiety and the tissue is the last one they have for the day.
What does the speaker say about love and selflessness?
-The speaker mentions that love involves going out of your way to help others despite being naturally selfish, giving the example of supporting an elderly neighbor or grandmother.
How does the speaker depict love as bravery?
-Love is depicted as bravery by showing courage in challenging situations, such as cycling through a storm to deliver a son's water bottle, cooking for a sick sibling despite a fear of fire, or climbing a tree to save a kitten.
What does the speaker say about love and small actions?
-The speaker emphasizes that love is waiting for and valuing the small things that matter, like waiting for a child to start speaking despite pressure from others or asking a tired father about his day and making him tea.
What does the speaker believe love ultimately represents?
-The speaker believes that love is complex, not just a simple or sweet gesture. It is the driving force for many virtues, making an ordinary person extraordinary through acts of patience, kindness, and bravery.
How does the speaker connect love with courage?
-The speaker connects love with courage by sharing examples where love makes people do brave things, such as overcoming personal fears to help others, like saving a kitten or preparing food for a sick family member.
What is the speaker's final message about love?
-The speaker's final message is that love is not just about words or grand gestures but is a powerful, complex force that motivates people to act in extraordinary ways to bring happiness or well-being to others.
Outlines
💭 Reflecting on Love’s Many Virtues
This paragraph explores various interpretations of love, delving into how people perceive it as sweet words or thoughtful gestures. The speaker reflects on how their understanding of love has evolved from childhood, when it was associated with simple expressions like saying 'I love you,' to a more mature, complex perspective. Love is portrayed as patience, especially in waiting for loved ones in challenging circumstances, such as a surgeon working long hours or waiting for a child’s developmental milestones. Through personal examples, love is depicted as an act of kindness, selflessness, and courage, such as offering a tissue to a stranger, supporting an elderly neighbor, or braving personal fears to help family members or pets. The overarching message is that love isn’t just about romantic notions but involves small, often challenging acts of care and bravery for the happiness and well-being of others.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Love
💡Patience
💡Kindness
💡Bravery
💡Selflessness
💡Courage
💡Sacrifice
💡Empathy
💡Virtue
💡Complexity
Highlights
Love is not just words, but actions that speak louder, shown through patience and understanding in everyday life.
Love means waiting, whether for a partner who is a surgeon or a father returning home after a long day.
Love is shown through small, considerate actions like making tea for a tired parent, despite being exhausted yourself.
Patience with loved ones, like waiting for a child to speak despite external pressures, exemplifies love's enduring nature.
Love is kindness in small gestures, like offering a tissue to a crying stranger, even when it's the last one you have.
Helping an elderly neighbor press a lift button or supporting a grandmother shows love’s strength in simple assistance.
Love is putting others' needs before your own, especially when doing so challenges your natural tendencies.
Courage driven by love helps you face fears, like cycling in the rain to deliver something important for a child.
Love is caring for a sick sibling by cooking for them, despite personal fears or discomfort, because their well-being matters most.
Acts of bravery, such as rescuing a kitten from a tree despite fear of heights, show love’s ability to push beyond fear.
Love is complex and multifaceted, not merely simple or sweet, but the source of great strength and courage.
Selflessness is at the core of love, motivating people to act in ways that benefit others, despite personal struggles.
Love empowers individuals to make extraordinary efforts, turning ordinary people into heroes for those they care about.
Love is not just about receiving, but about giving without expectation, putting others’ needs first in everyday actions.
Love’s true meaning lies in the bravery and sacrifice we show for those around us, proving that love is an extraordinary force.
Transcripts
[Music]
next up we have contestant number three
Jacinda love and his virtues love and
his virtues the cinder what is love and
what does it do many people think that
love is sweet breath whisper into your
ear to make you feel better
others think that love is someone doing
nice things for you for your happiness
well I think that love is many things
when I was young I used to think that
love meant me saying I love you to
someone else I used to think that love
meant hugs and kisses and love means
Mouse but after all these years in my
life though only 16 I have seen and
heard so much they have completely
changed my perception of this word known
as love love is patience love is waiting
for your partner a surgeon at a hospital
working tirelessly and endlessly to save
lives and you understand that they may
spend more time on their career than on
you but used to wait for them to spend a
time together even though it may be
short love is waiting for your father to
come home after a long day at work you
ask him about his day and you make him a
nice cup of warm tea to soothe his
nerves despite you being so tired and
you really really want to sleep love is
waiting for your child to start talking
on her own
despite pressures from your family
asking why isn't she talking yet but you
understand that this child needs time
and you wait for her because you love
her love is waiting for the small things
that truly matter even if you are
naturally impatient love is kindness
love is taking out a piece of clean
tissue from your back offering it to a
lady who has been crying on the bus
non-stop
for whatever reason despite you having
social anxiety and you find it so hard
to talk to others you give it to her and
that piece of tissue is the last piece
of tissue you have in your back for the
rest of the day love is helping you live
your elderly neighbor to press the live
button because his eyesight is
deteriorating and he can no longer see
you do this for him every time he comes
into the lift love is lending your two
shoulders to your grandmother who can no
longer balance on her two feet and now
lean on you for support the is going out
of your way to help others around you
people that you love despite you being
naturally selfish the is brave love is
cycling in the rain braving the storm
with one hand holding the umbrella and
the other balancing the bike you do this
to deliver your son's bottle to his
classroom because he left it at home
because you want him to get enough water
for the day love is cooking porridge for
your sister who is so sick weak and
tired to get up from her bit you are so
scared of the fire yet you do it because
you want her to get better
love is climbing up a ladder against a
tree constantly peeping down because you
are so scared of falling but you
continue because you want to save that
kitten who has been up there for hours
love makes you do the bravest things
makes you courageous so that you may be
able to make others happier or healthier
the is not simple and it is not just
sweet for empty words
love is complex and it is the driving
force for so many wonderful virtues love
is what makes an ordinary person
extraordinary thank you
[Applause]
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