Yes, my intentions were there. I had prepared a plan. For the past 3 years, I tried and attempted to be part of TED talks. It was always “sorry we’ve selected other speakers” or “you do not have the experience we are looking for ” Of course I didn’t give up hope. I kept waiting for the right opportunity. I did have a story to tell -I felt anyway and sooner or later, I was going to get my voice heard. I did accomplish my goal of writing my book – Anything is possible- about living thru adversity and overcoming obstacles. I write about viewing those “obstacles” as just parts of life and not roadblocks. I write about success being possible for anyone. So, one day I received a random phone call from the community college. “Lorenzo, how would you like to speak at the college with 11 other speakers? The theme was Dare to Defy. I was thrilled!  I would be  Tedx ! How did you hear about me? He said he read my book on Amazon and it matches their theme perfectly. So I accepted and was honored. I started preparing. I wrote my abstract , made a PowerPoint, wrote a bio and speech that I would read. Although most of what I had to say was memory, I wanted to interject many thought to my target groups — college students. After many days of preparation, the big day came. I showed up ,confident I was ready to shine. I sat, watching presenter after presenter speak. The college administrator even spoke. They were all fantastic. I couldn’t wait to convey my message of confidence, attitude and vision to the students and how important it is in helping to overcome obstacles and getting thru adversity. My turn!! I walked out on stage, to about 200 people, my family and bright lights of course. The moment I started to speak, I felt awesome!! Then about 45 seconds in – it happened. I couldn’t see anything & I totally, completely forgot my next sentence. I didn’t know what the next one after that was either. I sat for a moment thinking. I asked the audience for a moment , then another. I actually thought about walking off stage. But thought, NO, its not an option. I said “I’m sorry, give me a sec ,” . Then suddenly my niece tells something about a part of my speech that she recalls. She had rehearsed with me. From all those people, it was her voice I heard. It jars my memory, and I suddenly start my speech picking up where I I remember last. And I was able to finish my speech. It wasn’t pretty. It certainly wasn’t without flaws. But I finished. I wish I could do it over mistake free, and one day , I will. But I realized something that day. A young autistic boy approached me after my speech and asked me to autograph his program. He said to me -” You were a great inspiration to me. Your speech was about overcoming obstacles and not giving up. It was about believing in yourself. And you did that. Thank you. You could’ve given up but you didn’t. ” That made my whole experience worth it all  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpWQ-172Zx0