Diamond in the Rough

Taylor Rayne Gardner

Tess Evans

Eng 103

21 September 2011

If Jeannette Walls is what we here in America consider “less fortunate” I don’t know how anyone in the world can hope to achieve his or her “fortune.” She moved across the stage and eagerly shook the hand of the man who introduced her with a genuine smile on her face before taking her place center stage. Such clarity and honesty coming from such an interesting and diverse background still is intriguing. When she spoke she spoke with such a gentle but sincere voice, it was mesmerizing. When I had read the book the voice in my head was that of a rough, rugged girl, but there in front of me she spoke in such a manner that I could have believed she were talking directly to me. The entire time she spoke, when addressing questions asked by audience members she was so sincere and appreciative of every moment she was given and every face in the audience, it almost made me sad that I was going to return to the world of sarcastic remarks and selfish people.

She revisited some of her more memorable moments that were present in the book, but also many that weren’t. The thing that made her stories appealing even after we had read them was the way she told them. She told each story the way a teacher reads to a class of children, with a variety of voices for individual characters and big gestures to make the story more vivid in the imagination. Her gestures and entrancing voice weren’t the only things that made her so appealing to the audience, which to my surprise was much more than teens, also teachers and parents and older folks. She also had a witty sense of humor that people of all ages could appreciate. In between her stories and advice she was throwing out one-liners that had the whole theater laughing.

The audience was lost in her stories, teens in mid text message would lower their phones to lean in and listen. It was as though her voice was a hand reaching through the auditorium and touching each person in the place. As she spoke and her many inspirational messages washed over the room she crossed the stage engaging all parts of the auditorium. Each word she spoke carried some emotional value and she shared that value with all members of the audience.

Her speech though filled with colorful anecdotes and lighthearted jokes and witty comments also had three strong points that she was trying to send to the crowd. The first being that we all must face our demons, that is our fears, the second that we are all textured, scarred, and have stories some are just more easily hidden than others and finally that we should all create strong hopes and dreams and courage our youth to do the same. Her parting words as she left the stage “embrace your textures, face your demons, and build your own glass castles.”