Speaker Training

I'm in Florida for Wycliffe Associates at speaker training. Since I will be speaking on their banquet tour for the next month, I'm here to learn how to tell my stories effectively to communicate and keep people's attention. We're at a hotel near Orlando and the days are pretty grueling.. but they sure do feed us well!

I've been learning a lot, developing stories that fit into 2 minutes and communicate the truth of the situation I'm describing. Telling stories is more like theater - not so much like songwriting. With songwriting I'm crafting poetry that captures multiple shades of meaning to communicate truth with stories and imagery, but with storytelling I'm capturing emotional and image-rich events in natural, every-day language. A subtle difference. Songwriting relies on the words and music to communicate, while storytelling relies mostly on non-verbal cues.

There is definitely some overlap, and I find I'm taking to it like a fish to water. Or perhaps more like a dog to water - maybe I'll turn into a dolphin eventually. Still working on that and will let you know what happens by the end of the week. If you'd like to come to a banquet (April 5 - May 8 in Georgia and South Carolina) to hear my stories and how you can be part of getting scriptures to the millions of people around the world who still do not have any of God's Word in a language that they can understand, check out the dates below, and my or the WA website for more details.

Apr 5 Valdosta, GA

Apr 6 Americus, GA

Apr 8 Columbus, GA

Apr 9 Warner Robins, GA

Apr 10 Macon, GA

Apr 12 Fayetteville, GA

Apr 13 Conyers, GA

Apr 15 Marietta, GA

Apr 16 Rome, GA

Apr 17 Norcross, GA

Apr 19 Gainesville, GA

Apr 20 Athens, GA

Apr 22 Anderson, SC

Apr 23 Greenville, SC

Apr 24 Spartanburg, SC

Apr 26 Rock Hill, SC

Apr 27 Aiken, SC

Apr 29 Augusta, SC

Apr 30 Columbia, SC

May 1 Florence, SC

May 3 Mount Pleasant, SC

May 4 Savannah, GA

May 6 Statesboro, GA

May 7 Waycross, GA

May 8 Jacksonville, FL

A Weekend Jaunt

This past weekend I played a couple shows - one near Lewisberry, PA (which I forgot to take video at) and one in Severna Park, MD. They were both a lot of fun, but very different. In Lewisberry I played for a church event in which the audience were mostly older than me. They sat quietly and listened carefully and laughed appropriately - it was very easy to engage them, and they expressed a lot of appreciation afterwards. It was a lot of fun.

The Severna Park event was also at a church, but the listeners were mostly younger than me, and were doing other things while listening (pretty smart, in my opinion - when I was that age I wouldn't sit and listen to someone like me for very long). So it was a very energetic audience, but the energy was different than at the PA show. I also noticed that most of the people older than me who were there moved closer to the stage and when I directed comments to them they really responded and got into the music. It was a lot of fun.

So those are just a few thoughts. Interesting how events can be so different and yet both be incredibly enjoyable. Unfortunately, since I forgot to video the first show, you can't compare them yourself, but here's some video from the second event. Two videos - one of me explaining the event and soundchecking, and a song by Brian LoPiccolo (who just released his first album, so click here to check it out) which features harmonica and bagpipes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lPrQeRbeA0I

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4uliKFyLwk

Tunes in the Car, Will Travel

One really sweet thing about not having Florence anymore is that I now have a car that is slightly newer. 1991 Honda Accord - six whole years younger! Some friends at church had wanted to get a truck for the last 12 years, and when they heard about my accident, thought it might be the perfect opportunity to bless me. So amazingly cool how God works!

So not only does this car meet my needs for transportation, it also has a sunroof, auto windows and locks, and is a station wagon (so lots more room for stuff). And did I mention cruise control? When I was touring around last year, that was one thing I really wished I had. Those 9 hour drives are no joke.

With all these modern amenities, I thought "hey, why not go overboard and get a real stereo system - with a CD player or something so I can listen to something besides the radio". So my friend Ethan had an extra one lying around which happened to be perfect for my needs - a car CD-player/radio with an aux input for an MP3 player. Pretty cool. Now I just had to figure out how to install it.

Accordingly, around lunch time the other day I began the installation process. And was it a process! I realize now that I should have videotaped the whole thing because it was actually quite humorous. I thought it wouldn't take too long, a couple hours and I'd have it changed out... The reality was a total of 5 hours, with a trip to the store for extra tools. Do you realize that they make some screws impossible to get at?!! The most time-consuming part was connecting the wires (they don't leave much room for this sort of thing, and there are like 50 million of them that have to be properly connected according to the little diagram) and then trying to get it all to fit back properly into the right spot. Honda does not make it easy...

But all's well that ends well - and I now have tunes in my car! Which makes it much easier to listen to mixes and all the CDs that people have given me on my travels. I may still need to invest in an MP3 player (anyone have one lying around that they're not using?) and a new radio antenna (the one I have is a mechanical extender whose motor has broken), and I'm wondering if there's some sort of wire mesh stuff that will help protect against skipping (though it's only skipped once since I put it in, when I happened to drive over a HUGE pothole). It is pretty amazing though - this is the first car I've had where I can listen to music of my own choice. And the choices are endless!