Messin' with Texas

Here in Beaumont we have a group called the La Cercle Francaise (The French Circle). It is based out of Lamar University and is organized by the head of the French deparment there, Dr Ken Rivers. Twice a year they show a series of French films on campus on a weekly basis, and about once a month during the school year, they have meetings. Meetings are hosted at someone’s home, there is food and wine, music, and a presenter – it’s a very social and welcoming event.

I found out about the French Circle from two people I overheard speaking French in an Italian restaurant. I interrupted their conversation to ask where they were from and we proceeded to chat a bit. They told me I should get in touch with Dr Rivers at Lamar University.

This past weekend, I was the presenter. It was only my second meeting, but I was all too eager to get up in front of everyone and present something that was really significant to me. My topic was my year living and studying in Switzerland. I gave the whole thing in French (with English translation), which was mentally exhausting. I haven’t used my French in quite some time, so I had to focus harder than I have in a long time. The presentation I threw together the night before was just a series of pictures organized to form an overview of Swiss culture and my life there (I believe the words in a presentation should come from your mouth not from the slides). You can download the presentation and look through it for yourself by clicking the flag below:

The presentation went very well. I recieved lots of compliments and positive feedback. Despite not having used my French in a while, I was surprisingly at ease. For some reason I always find it easier to present in French than I do in English. I am not sure why but I don’t seem to get nervouse when I am presenting in French and everything seems to flow very well. Perhaps it is because I am focusing on how to say what I want to say.