On the occasion of the Spring Conference, Toastmasters from all over Japan gathered at Hitotsubashi Hall, Chiyoda-ku, to enjoy the speeches (in Japanese and English) by 16 distinguished speakers representing each division, with the motto “SPARK” in mind. “SPARK” widens the horizon in front of us and brightens our thoughts.
                                    
Date/   Sunday May 13, 2018
enue/   Hitotsubashi Hall
Host/   Japanese contest       Meguro TMC
            English contest          Fantasista TMC

9:30     Japanese speech contest called to order    
                                                                Contest Chair TM S. M. (MeguroTMC)
The 1st   contestant      TM J. K.          広島の灯火              (Hiroshima Momiji TMC)
The 2nd   contestant     TM H. K.         はい、はい、はい (Yokohama Frontire TMC)The 3rd   contestant     TM M. Y.         ざまあみやがれ                         ( Tokai TMC)
The 4th   contestant     TM K. O.          傾聴スキル         ( Nihonbashi Century TMC)The 5th   contestant     TM S. H.          ただ会うだけ                    ( Edo Utage TMC)
The 6th   contestant     TM N. N.          年賀状って何の為             (Kumamoto TMC)
The 7th   contestant     TM H. T.          ねじ外す、部品を替える、ねじ締める        
                                                                                              (Musashi -Urawa TMC)
The 8th   contestant     TM T. K.          一歩でも前に   (Omotesando Bilingual TMC)

    The eight contestants gave us wonderful speeches. The titles themselves were quite unique, which aroused our curiosity.

The winners were:
The first place             TM H. T.           (Musashi Urawa TMC)
The second place       TM H. K.           (Yokohama frontier TMC)
The third place            TM T. K.           (Omotesando Bilingual TMC)
　　　　　　　　　　
     Congratulations.   It was impressive that the contestants all thanked their fellow toastmasters for today’s their feats.

13:00     Keynote Speech titled “Lead With Your Heart” by Pat Johnson.  She is
              the past International President for Toastmasters International, 2010-2011.
                                      
     The world needs heartfelt leaders. Heart, Vision, Teamwork, Passion, Authenticity, Courage, these are keys for heartfelt leaders. To live as a Leader, we need physical and mental strength and resilience. She sang the Song, Lead with your heart, it’s the right way like the polar star leads us.

14:00           International (English) Speech Contest called to order  
                                                           Contest Chair   TM N.T.    ( Fantasista TMC) 
The 1st contestant      TM T. O.       “What if”                             ( Bashamichi TMC)
The 2nd contestant     TM M. J.       “My secret to success”          (Nishitokyo TMC)
The 3rd contestant      TM R. K.       “Line”                                  ( Tokyo ESS TMC)
The 4th contestant      TM R. L. H.   “Life is Hard”                                (Tokyo TMC)
The 5th contestant      TM M. C. K.  “What’s that supposed to be?” (Tokushima TMC)
The 6th contestant      TM N. S.       “You’re gonna be OK”           (Fantasista TMC)
The 7th contestant      TM J. B.        “Magic Words”                        (Nagasaki TMC)
The 8th contestant.     TM C. J. M.   “The day that changed My Life”  (Osaka TMC)

    “What if”   TM T. O.   He suggested that we should say yes anyway, without being afraid of what if we’d fail, and panic later.
    “My secret to success”   TM M. J. She had survived a terrible car accident, which lead her to be convinced that what’s important is not about money thing but           actually life itself, friends, family, and love.
    “Line”   TM R. K.   She has impaired sight and thus she noticed the white canes for   them draw a line between the disabled and not disabled not only when people take care of them but also when people praise them. She wants people to cross the Line , not treating them differently.  
    “Life is Hard”   TM R. L. H.   He admitted we’ve got a lot of problems on different stages of our lives without exception. But when we accept that as “That’s a life”, we can see life differently and we all still have a good time.
    “What’s that supposed to be?” TM M. C. K.    She started the speech with ”Have you ever had your dream destroyed by negative  comments?” She once got a comment on her drawing: ”What’s that supposed to be?” , which formed mental block in her about drawing. Luckily she was saved by her little daughter’s saying “Just try. “Just try and fight against negative circumstances is the answer.
    “You’re gonna be OK.”   TM N. S.   When she exhausted herself by raising her baby only on mother’s milk, she met an elderly doctor, who had been an army surgeon.     His words “Take it easy, you’re gonna be OK” were very effective. She imitated his way of speaking so skillfully.
    “Magic Words”     TM J. B.   He encouraged us to use magic words. For example, instead of saying “ Have a nice day”,   “Have a dynamic day.” or “Have a  colorful day.” might fascinate people more. “Avoid using boring ordinary words and use your own magic words. “
    “The day that changed My Life”   TM C. M.   Since the day of his horrible car accident, what is important for him has totally changed as a survivor. Thinking what if he would die , he encouraged us to say “I love you” more to our family, appreciate them and spend more time together.

The winners were:
The first place           TM M. C. K.              (Tokushima TMC)
The second place     TM R. L. H.               (Tokyo TMC)
The third place          TM C. J. M.               (Osaka TMC)
                                  
Congratulations!  

The audience thanked all the amazing contestants and the TMCs that hosted this contest and other staff　( See the picture. They were so many of them.)
　　　　　　　         
2018 International Speech Contest adjourned, giving everyone the “SPARK” with the thunder of applause.

                                                                                 By M. I.