SPEAKING TO BE HEARD

Mackenzie Minor stepped up to the front of the class, shaking with nerves. She brushed her black skirt smooth; she was dressed ready to make a statement. She had practiced for this moment, but still couldn’t help but feel unprepared because of her lack of confidence in her writing and public speaking abilities. With a shaky start, she began to speak, growing more and more comfortable as she went on. Because she was so passionate about her topic --- the humanity of cropping dog’s ears and docking their tails --- Minor was soon lost in her speech and the ten minutes passed quickly. As the classroom filled with applause, she took a deep breath and walked back to her seat. A couple weeks passed and her grade for the project came out. She had done extremely well, much better than she had thought she would do. This experience taught Minor to stop doubting herself, and she went home feeling ready to tackle the next hurdle that came her way.