My question today is have you ever had such a profound weekend that you learned something new about the word “Friends.”
This past weekend was one of those experiences for me when someone asked me how was your weekend, I must say Great!
I’m a Toastmaster!
Toastmasters International -Home
In my current role as Program Quality Director (PQD) for my District, I was responsible for the planning and execution of our 2025 Spring Conference held in Panama City, Florida April 25-26, 2025.
In almost every Toastmasters Club around the world, each District will have its Spring Conference either in April or May before the outgoing Trio (District Director, Program Quality Director, and Club Growth Director) is elected for the upcoming Toastmasters year that happens on July 1st like clockwork.
As PQD I was also responsible for selecting our Keynote Speaker.
I’ll get to that in a minute.
There is a specific order of business at each Spring Conference and ours was no different.
In the end, It’s a display of leadership and proper planning for those attending that you want to make your conference as memorable as possible.
Aside from my weekend being profound (Meaningful and Heartfelt) it was packed with various aspects of six degrees of separation that were also deep.
On October 25, 1983, the United States Army was engaged in a Campaign known as “Urgent Fury.”
Our guest speaker was born in Grenada and when I asked him how old he was during the invasion he wasn’t even a Teenager.
The connection between him and I was Grenada. It helped tie something together for me. What you don’t know is after the invasion the following year a soldier that I trained while I was a Drill Sergeant at Fort Benning, thanked me for training him properly.
The invasion was ordered by President Ronald Reagan, citing the threat posed to American nationals on the Caribbean nation of Grenada by that nation’s pro-Marxist regime. The invasion overthrew Grenada’s government in little more than a week.
Until this weekend I had never met anyone who understood what happened and was impacted by the service of the United States Army.
There were other connections, however this one was noteworthy.
What was also noteworthy were his profound quotes.
The first came from his grandmother as he shared with all in attendance “When you rise lift others with you.”
The second one was “Friends will take you there and take you back.”
Many of us probably don’t have a long list of friends that fit into that category. I was honored as he presented me with an autographed personal copy of “Speak to Inspire” that he co-authored with Viktoriya Sokolova.
“McKinley, Words cannot begin to describe how grateful I am for everything you did to make my trip comfortable. Please enjoy this copy as my appreciation to you. You definitely are the friends that take you there and take you back!” Roger Caesar
The person I’m talking about is none other than Roger Caesar Toastmasters International third-place World Champion of Public Speaking 2021.
Brampton Toastmaster places third at World Championship of Public Speaking
Roger also told us a personal story of what his mother said to him saying “You will know when the time is right.”
As I thought about what transpired over the weekend as it related to the word “Friends” I reflected on those who continue to support me without me having to ask them.
The words “Friends will take you there and take you back” are profound when you understand the full intent behind those nine words.
It is a reminder to me of how you treat people and how they treat you in response to your kindness, sincerity, and compassion for them.
Although there are other words that I could also use or choose these three resonate with my life and how I felt in each situation.
This weekend I wrote in my gratitude journal about the importance of the nine words and the people who I call my friends.
Maybe you have a list of friends that fit in that category too.
I plan to do something special to honor them and show my appreciation for their friendship.
I’m forever grateful to every person who helped make the 2025 Spring Conference a success. As I am preparing to take on my new role as District Director on July 1, 2025, there were various lessons I learned this weekend.
I also had the opportunity to teach a workshop this past weekend and spoke about the Circle of Concern (Things we have no control over) and the Circle of Influence (Things we have control over.) Stephen R. Covey’s “Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.”
The finale of our Spring Conference is the Distinguished Toastmasters (DTM) Walk. This is where the designation of being a DTM is bestowed upon you for others to see your accomplishments and recognize your successes.
I had earned my second DTM and was officially recognized in front of my peers with a fanfare of congratulations.
It was truly a moment “When you rise lift others with you.”
Many of the people who congratulated me during the DTM Walk were the ones who lifted me through my journey.
Toastmasters International -Distinguished Toastmaster
I’ll leave you with these two quotes: “Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.” Eleanor Roosevelt
“Count your age by friends, not years. Count your life by smiles, not tears.” ~ John Lennon
This weekend it’s those footprints and smiles that cause me to reflect on those words. “Friends will take you there and take you back.”
Today, I challenge you to take some time this week to reflect and think about those nine words “Friends will take you there and take you back.” Maybe you will do something special to honor them and show your appreciation for their friendship.
