The Fearless Speaker - Stanley the disfluent by Fernandel Salomon (good summer reads txt) 📕

THE FEARLESS SPEAKER

The Story of Stanley the disfluent
Written by Fernandel Salomon

This is a story about a young man with lots of potential. - A very intelligent young man who has every characteristic of a leader but may not believe in himself, because others put him down. "Stanley is nerd! Stanley is a stutterer! Stanley smells like cheese! Stanley is going to be a nobody!", says his classmates Lydia, Jonathan, and Zena.


The Story begins...

Stanley grabs his books, pencils, notebooks, and then goes to class.

Teacher Theresa: Good morning class, homework is due today. There is no make up. Please pass in your homework.

Stanley: ( Sitting in front of class passes in his homework, but no one else does)

teacher Theresa: I expect the best from all of you. Let us work on getting the homework done. (pauses, looks at Stanley) Great job Stanley! -Always an A+ student.

Lydia: (fast talker) Great job nerd!

Zena: (whispers, points at Stanley, gestures her nose) Stanley smells like cheeezz!

Lydia: Mr. Fromage! -French for cheese

Stanley: (Sadly listening, but actively taking notes)

Lydia: (shoots a spitball from a straw at Stanley, but Stanley does not flinch)

Zena: ha, ha, Carrot head!

Teacher Theresa: (interrupts the talking in class) Stanley has done all of the homework with a grade point average of 4.5. People that get their homework done go far in life. They are our Doctors, Teachers, and Senators.

Zena: (whispers) Stanley the Senator.

Jonathan: Stanley the Senator, huh, right.

Lydia: (quickly responds) More like Stanley the Stutterer.

Zena: Stanley the stew-peed

Teacher Theresa: Excuse me class!

Jonathan: (towards everyone) Stupid.

_________________________________________________

At the school cafeteria, Stanley volunteers. He is helping to make pizza, and here comes his classmates. (His classmates focus on Stanley and not the server)

Jonathan: (in a deep voice) Sup Stan…

Stanley: (Stanley looks down, does not say a word but smiles)

Jonathan: Lemme (Let me) get a pizza, fam (family)

Stanley: (smiles like never before)

The other classmates come in, first with a shout from Lydia

Lydia: Great job nerd!

Zena: I’ll have one cheese slice, you French cheese something, something face.

Lydia: It’s Fromage Visage, it’s French for cheese face.

Jonathan: Stupid. Stanley is a loser.

Stanley: (chest begins to hurt, a bitter taste in his mouth, cries in hiding onto his left sleeve)

_________________________________________________

Teacher Theresa in her office, her door closed. Her voice is heard saying, “ what is going on class?”

Teacher Theresa: What is going on class? I expect better from you all in your behavior towards school and education. You are free to go now. Thank you.

The class leaves Teacher Theresa’s office, and sees Stanley waiting outside the door. The group does not say anything to him but grunts.

Lydia: (smacks her lips and rolls her eyes)

Zena: (takes a deep breath, puckers her lips)

Jonathan: ( puffs his chest, and stares down Stanley, but does not say a word)

_________________________________________________

Stanley is in Teacher Theresa’s office.

Teacher Theresa: Great job Stanley!
You are doing a great job in class and school.
Your parents must be very proud of you.
(Stanley pauses, and remembers the passing of his dear mother to breast cancer)

Teacher Theresa: I am very proud of you. I will always be there for you. (pauses)

Teacher Theresa: I used to be a very quiet person. People used to put me down. My favorite teacher had a talk with me once and it gave me the strength to become the person that I am today.
She asked me “what do you think of yourself?” (a long pause, a smile from Teacher Theresa)

Teacher Theresa: That is all that I wished to tell you today. Meet again in my office next week.

Stanley: (stutters) Tha, tha, tha, thank you.

Teacher Theresa: You are very welcome Stanley! You are an awesome young man! Don't you think so?

___________________________________________________

Months followed.
Stanley is in Teacher Theresa’s office on different days practicing public speaking.
Stanley reading the “I have a dream” speech by Dr. Reverend Martin Luther King (in different clothes - at different practice intervals) Stanley leaves Professor Theresa’s office one morning and says hi to a girl he likes in the hallway. Stanley speaks!

Stanley: Hi, you are very pretty.

Pretty Girl: Thank you. You are very handsome.

Stanley: I know! Just kidding, thanks. My name is Stanley. What’s your name?...............

Stanley and the pretty girl Helia

eventually become best friends.

____________________________________________________

Years have gone by, Stanley and the others are adults now. Zena is a mother of two, Jonathan is a business person, and Lydia is in the Force. Stanley has just won the election! He is a Senator!

Zena: (reading a popular magazine at the Supermarket aisle) Stanley the Senator - I love it! Professor Theresa was right. I feel really bad for putting him down when we were younger.

Jonathan: (in front of the TV set, 10 o’clock news, eating potato chips) He’s a brilliant man, Stanley the Senator. I feel bad for the way I treated him when we were younger.

Teacher Theresa: (on her laptop, sees the story, smiles with joy) My son, I am proud of you young man. I have always believed in you.

Lydia: (tuning her radio in her car) Le Future D’ Amerique – America’s future.. That Stanley is a Fearless Speaker!

That Stanley is a Fearless Speaker

.

Publication Date: 12-01-2010

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