Speaking Publicly

Posted August 23rd, 2004 by Michelle

I have to give a presentation tomorrow in front of people who could change my job. Change it in a “make it so I can keep my job” kind of way. My organization runs out of money in, oh, less than a month unless we make major things happen. We have a line of credit, but we can’t dip into our line of credit if we don’t have the means to pay it back. As my mom said today, it’s amazing that we are in this crazy information age, an ease-of-travel age, when the arts have never been more accessible, but somehow that has been paired with the worst funding crisis in recent history. Why have people forgotten the arts? When did “art” become associalted with blue-hairs with tons of cash?

Anyway, I have to go to bed because I have to fuel up for tomorrow. I’ve worked extremely hard on tomorrow’s presentation, and I know the main thing I have to do is remain focused because sometimes I get excited and yabber on and on. I want tomorrow to go well. I could be brilliant, and nothing could come of it, but I know I can at least get these people thinking and get them to believe, even if just a little bit. It feels a little like an audition, I suppose because in a way it is. More than that, though, it’s an opportunity to change minds. I just have to breathe and remember the faith I have in what I’m doing. And try really hard not to trip or use the “F” word.