Yin Lijie, Class 43, Senior 1, Shenzhen Middle School

I hardly remember anything that I said.

I could only remember the tremble of my hands as I held onto my paper with my notes, and remember feeling as if my stomach had tied itself into a knot, and my legs had turned to water as I stood there, nervously reading my statement. One year ago, when I stood up in debating club, my nerve’s frazzled.

At that time, I was terribly afraid of doing anything public. I spent whole nights remembering the trembling that took hold of me every time I walked on to the stage, and my classmates’ and teachers’ concentrated stare. On stage, I was like a deer caught in the glare of a headlight frozen in fright.

I had almost given up public speaking skills as lost, but our debating teacher, David, believed in me.

On an afternoon after our club meeting, the air conditioner was buzzing sleepily and the room was uncomfortably cold. David and I were the last remaining in the classroom. He asked to talk with me.

“Do you get nervous on stage?” he asked kindly. “Yeah, I do...” At this, he smiled reassuringly, “Well, stage fright is quite normal for everyone, indeed. I was afraid of speeches in high school.”

He told me about his embarrassing speeches in high school, how he had nearly tripped on the steps, and how his shirt was soaked through with sweat. He smiled reminiscently, and turning back to my “little problem,” he continued earnestly: “Really, you have it in yourself. You are way better than I was when I was a kid, and yet look here I am. Just have faith in yourself.”

I looked at David. His eyes were earnest and shining, like morning mists before the rising sun. My worries seemed to waver under that firm air of “I believe in you” in his voice.

As I said “good afternoon” and left him that day, my mind whirled with a strange mixture of hope and fear. Watching the west side of the sky lit up with the fiery hue of the setting sun, I thought hard, confirming and denying whether I could succeed in becoming a public speaker. When I reached home, I came to a resolution: Whatever it is that’s coming my way, I’ll work through it.

After that afternoon talk, David and I both worked hard to improve my presentation. Take teaching and setting up an example, I mimicked him and tried to find the pattern in his way of speaking. And as I trained and fought back my fear, I grew more confident. My hand steadied, my words turned fluent, my feet stood firm on the podium, and my eyes scanned over the crowds and met theirs unwaveringly. I learned to trust in myself.