Abstract There exists a variety of speeches that have been delivered in the past by distinguished personalities. One such speech was delivered by Lou Gehrig at the close of his baseball career spanning over 17 years. The very first part of this text conveys the opposite message of the said speech. The second part of this text, on the other hand, develops a speech address to be delivered at a global environmental forum.
Speech
For the first part of this exercise, I will dwell on Lou Gehrig's speech. The speech in question has featured prominently in quite a number of speech collections as a truly historical speech, alongside those given by the likes of Martin Luther King and Winston Churchill. Commonly referred to as the Iron Horse due to both his commitment and durability as far as baseball is concerned, Gehrig was at the prime age of 36 when he was struck by what has now come to be referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease. The disease effectively ended his long and illustrious career in baseball. This speech, which I will rewrite to convey the opposite message, was delivered by Gehrig during a ceremony held in his honor by his friends and team mates. Given his circumstances at the time, one would have expected the speech to be self-defeating and perhaps full of pity. Gehrig instead chose to speak of all those things he was thankful for and why he regarded himself lucky.
The Speech: My Version
"Ladies and gentlemen, wonderful fans, it is with great sorrow that I wish to confirm what you have been reading in the dailies for the past two weeks. It is true, ladies and gentlemen, that I got a bad break. To me, this is the lowest point of my career spanning over seventeen years. I have had wonderful experiences in the past; but I have had my share of misfortunes too. I regard the unfortunate situation in which I now find myself one of the misfortunes I have suffered in the recent past.
Look at my team mates. All this are people of great ability. I would give anything to join them again. But as they say, if wishes were horses, beggars would surely ride.
I have been lucky in the past. However, it is now obvious that I have run out of luck. It is with great pain that I accept a sendoff gift from my former team mates. It is with nostalgia that I remember all those trophies and the precious moments we have shared in the past.
Sometimes, I keep reminding myself that regardless of the fact that things seem to be headed downhill; as far as I am concerned, at least I haven't lost everything - if that is some consolation. I have a family. I have caring parents, an understanding mother-in-law, and a beautiful wife. But family too has its own unique challenges; this I must say.
I must now close by saying; my career is now officially over. I wish I could turn back the clock, but then again, if wishes were horses (stares at the audience)
Thank you."
Speech 2
In this section, I develop a speech I would like to deliver sometimes in the near future. Ideally, I would like to deliver the speech to an audience of policy makers from across the world. The speech would be titled, Let us Protect our Planet, and it would be delivered at a global environmental forum. The purpose of this speech will be to win support for the adoption of measures aimed at reducing global warming.
The Speech: Let us protect our Universe
"Ladies and Gentlemen, as you may already know, one of the biggest challenges facing us collectively is global warming. The effect this phenomenon has on health, weather patterns, and even wildlife has been discussed in various forums. It would however be prudent to highlight some of these effects.
To begin with, the increase in temperature levels has been linked to adverse changes in weather patterns. For instance, according to the National Resources Defense Council - NRDC, "warmer water in the oceans pumps more energy into tropical storms, making them stronger and potentially more destructive." In the recent past, we have all seen the extent of damage storms have left in their wake. Something must be done. As NRDC further points out, there has been a significant increase in the occurrence of both level 5 and 4 storms. If nothing is done to contain the situation, we are likely to witness stronger and even more destructive storms going forward.
The effect of global warming on wild life cannot also be overstated. According to NRDC, scientists have in the past reported that polar bears could become extinct if nothing is done to prevent ice floes from melting. The council points out that if nothing is done now, it is likely that we shall not have even a single polar bear left by 2050. Ladies and gentlemen, if we really care for our wildlife, we must act now.
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