Stellar Stars Speech Competition Winners

2024 speech competition winner

Temi

Another Life

Chin up! Stand straight! Tie your hair back, it gives your face a more snatched look but do not tie it back all the time because people are going to think your hair is greasy. But do not have it down all the time that is boring. Do your makeup a certain way. Do not wear too much because then you are doing the most but if you choose to wear little makeup then you must never speak about it because as soon as you do, you are a “pick me.” Let me be a little bit more realistic, it is 2024, you can wear a full face of makeup but never on your birthday because then you look crazy. Eat three times a day but do not eat too much because then you will be “fat,” but do not eat too little either because then you will be too skinny. You must always eat just the right amount so you can add weight but only in all the right places. But how are you going to gain that “good” weight if you are not eating enough proteins. Regardless, all this does not matter if you are not going to the gym. But going to the gym is not going to make your face look any prettier so first, be pretty. Hm. And if you somehow manage to do all this then they will tell you that your body and face look fake. Then they will tell you that there is no way the before and the after is the same person. All of a sudden you cannot wear certain clothes because people will say you’re “asking for it” but that’s a conversation too many people are not ready to have. Never be weak! Always be strong! You must never cry but, if you do cry let it be in the four walls of your own room. Be yourself! Be unique! Stand out! Be different! But do not be too different because then you are trying too hard and now, you are just weird. 

Excuse me?

I am sure by now most of you already have an idea of what I have come to talk about today. It is a common topic, and the chance of you hearing someone else talk about this exact thing here today is not zero. So I’ll spare you the time that you’ll use to ask yourself “What’s the difference between this speech and all the other speeches I’ve heard about how people are losing their spark to fit into the societies’ most unreasonable standards” I’ll tell you that the only difference is that I am the one giving this speech because why should the topic ever change if society doesn’t change with it? Why should we move on and act like this isn’t a problem? Why should we ignore the fact that so many people are struggling and waking up in the midnight hour just to think about what they can do to somehow be the most authentic and unique version of themselves while checking enough boxes to be deemed socially acceptable but not too many boxes because then you’re just like every. Other. Girl. And I know this happens to guys too do not get me wrong, it is a double-edged sword, but I am speaking from my point of view. From what I know and what I have gone through firsthand, because at the end of the day who is better to talk about the problem itself than the person it directly affects?

In another life maybe I am prettier, in another life maybe I do not sound this way, maybe I do not talk this way, maybe I do not walk this way. ABSOLUTELY NOT. Maybe in another life, the world is nicer. Maybe in another life, we have a world of peace and love. Maybe in another life, we have a world that tells girls that it is okay to be themselves, that is it is okay to be different, that it is okay to simply exist. But that is not the world we live in today. The world we live in today is cruel and will waste no time in consuming the softer souls. Society today has created girls who spend their midnight hours thinking about how to be better than the next girl. Society today has created girls who spend their midnight hours crying because they feel like they will never be enough. They feel like they will never be better. They feel like they will never be happy because society continues to tell them that they should not be comfortable enough to exist purely in their own skin. Their hair is either too long or too short, they don’t have enough curves, they have way too much acne, their skin is too dark, their teeth aren’t white enough, their smile lines are a bit too visible, their lip to nose ratio is off balance, they don’t have a gap between their thighs when they walk, their cupid’s bow dips a bit too deep, their legs are not legging legs. I get so heated talking about these things, because do you notice how the further down that list of society influenced insecurities, the more absurd it all sounded. 

I am growing up to be a Black woman and I do not just want to be any Black woman. I want to be phenomenal, I want to be remarkable, and this means that there are days where I will be wrong and loud but today I stand loud and proud when I say that I don’t know about you but I am sick and tired of waking up every couple weeks and finding out that there is a new thing on my body that I am supposed to be ashamed of. A new thing on my body that I am not supposed to love because society says I should not. I refuse to let society tell me how to walk or how to talk. I refuse to let society tell me how to wear my hair and do my makeup. I refuse to let society tell me that it is not okay to do something just because it does not fall under the category of ‘socially acceptable’ or because I look weird doing it. From this moment on and for the rest of my life this is the mantra I am going to go by, and you should to. I want you all to repeat after me. 

I am enough.

I am important.

I matter.

I am beautiful.

I am capable.

I am wanted.

I am loved.

I am perfect just the way I am because you really are. 

2023 speech competition winner

Saloni 

Questions, we all have them. Why am I here? what’s the meaning of life? What am I if I’m not my thoughts, my body, my actions or my effects on people? Why can’t I motivate myself into doing the things I want? Why am I losing interest in the things I love? What is the definition of the word “I’ what is love? You can’t hear it, smell it or taste it. Is love just an intense concoction of emotions? Is justice a lie, as well as fair and hope? Was that a protective shield put over our eyes when we  

were young? Does objectivity even exist? If so, what makes something objectively good, bad, infinite, or real? Nothing. None of those things exist. So, what does? The inner chatter goes on and on and on. The only thing we know exists is infinite. The one thing we can never grasp or comprehend. The one thing we know exists can never be applied to ourselves and our life on earth. You see, the internet has created an idea of infinity. That life is that. Infinite. The reason we find life so beautiful is because life as we know it is fundamentally limited. My interaction with you, the audience, could be the last, and there’s something beautiful in that. 

There must be a root to all this discord, sadness, emptiness, and question that this uncertainty has caused. A reason why we all have suffered with understanding our own existence.  

There is. First, we need to be aware of the way we are living. Let me paint a picture for you. Seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years, decades, each life without a purpose, a  faded lesser copy of the one before. Eat, work, sleep, reproduce and die. Sounds really grim when put like that. Right? But without a purpose, that’s all it really is. Life without a distinct  

purpose is no life at all. Without knowing what to strive for, what to live and care for, we are meaningless, like the period at the end of some cosmic joke.  

What we initially will do to find some sense of belonging is to overwhelm ourselves with pleasures and experiences. Fight for academic validation, and fill our stomachs with money, yet still find we have an insatiable hunger. For something. Something that can wrap a blanket of comfort and undoubted security around us. We turn to social media, peaking into the lives of others, distracting ourselves from our own. “how to take the perfect selfie,” “Get ready with me to go to New York fashion week,” “Ten signs you have borderline personality disorder” “6 things in my wardrobe that I can’t live without” “the I phone 14 pro just dropped” “what is a nature deficit disorder and why are teens starting to struggle with it”… the endless pattern of scrolling,  liking, consuming, expelling, commenting, instant gratification, smoking, drinking, buying,  saving, parting, fighting, crying, regretting never seems to end.  

But everything comes to an end. “The only constant changes,” right? So there has to be an end to these destructive patterns. The destructive pattern of waking up every day, living a  monotonous life. One of purposeless. So how do we find purpose? 

Most people would say purpose may have something to do with getting through school, getting a good job, following your dreams, getting married, making good money, and having a family. Those things are purposeful, yes, bet they aren’t purposeful. What happens if those things don’t work out for you? Then what? Or what happens if those things work out for you? Then what? 

You need to ask yourself, “Who am I” like really. Not what people expect you to be, not the socially convenient version of you. Like

you. At the core. The toy who learned how to ride a bike on a summer’s day with a pink frilly helmet with training wheels on. The you who embraced your culture instead of locking it away so you wouldn’t get made fun of. The you who wasn’t scared to be loud, happy, and free. The you that seemed to know everything. Got that person in mind…? Good. What is something you are good at? Something you love and could teach with a  passion? It could be anything. Writing, piano, singing, volunteering, dancing, cooking, or even writing speeches. Did you get that too? Think about someone who could utilize the skills you have learned doing that thing that you love. How that skill could transform how they live their everyday life. That is the purpose. The effect that you have and will continue to have on another person for the better. Let me give an example. Being a black woman isn’t easy. One of the many challenges I had to face was my hair. I used to get bullied for how big it was. I hid it, neglected, and shaved it off because of this. But now, over the years, it’s grown back healthier than ever before. I know how to take care of It, and now I wear it out all the time. I could teach younger black girls how to love and take care of their hair. So they will never have to suffer as I did. So they will live without insecurity. That will be with them forever. That is purpose.  

You won’t always be able to find your purpose. Your purpose may just find you. The next time someone reaches out for your help, no matter your past with them is, I want you to give it to them. I want you to lend out a helping hand to anyone who needs it. Observe the feeling of fulfillment you feel. That warm fuzzy feeling that runs throughout your body. 

Break out of the destructive patterns you’ve been so blissfully unaware of. Stop living life without purpose, and don’t get caught up on the monotonous chores of life. Put down your phone. Get rid of any toxic instant gratification. Stop trying to ignore the inevitable. Understand and recognize that life is short. And it’s not always going to be there. Life is beautiful and delicate. Help bring people around you who are down up. Help them find their purpose. Help them break out of self-destructive patterns. Your purpose is to give to other people. To shine with that natural light that you have. I’m not asking you to change the world. I’m asking you to help the people around you. And in doing so, bathe in the riches that are not of paper. By doing that, you can finally hear the chatter of the uncertainty in your mind dissipate. Replaced with the slight hum of peace.