george kaiser family foundation
The Life Of King George - The King's speech
Have you watched the film called The King's speech which depicts the life of King George VI and they way in which he had to cope with a stammering problem?. The film stars Colin Firth and is sure to bring stuttering back into focus.
It was bad enough for just a mere mortal like myself to have a stutter, just imagine therefore how difficult it must have been for King George VI of England. He was the King between the years of 1937 and 1952 during which time his country fought in the Second World War. King George VI has proved an inspiration to me and his story should be of interest to many other people who have, or have had, a speech impediment.
I started to stutter when I was aged four. It had a major impact on my life and was a ready made excuse for all of my failings. I blamed the speech impediment for my lack of progress in life and for my lack of confidence. I always knew that my life would be that much happier and successful if I were only able to eradicate the stutter - this has certainly proved to be correct as I have now enjoyed fluency for the past 12 years.
I did hide behind my stutter and did feel very sorry for myself. This was to especially annoy my grandmother who saw it as a sign of weakness. She wanted the best for me and would often tell me to man up. Unfortunately there was a lack of quality stuttering therapy around at the time however.
When I was aged 14 my grandmother sat me down and told me about King George VI. This was the King that did not want to be King, maybe due to his stutter and overall shyness. She stated that the whole country would huddle next to their transistor radios to hear the King speak. They had great admiration for him as he never let them down, they did not care that he struggled with his words.
During the war itself, King George VI was most certainly there for his people. He would visit the towns and cities that had been bombed; to offer support and to share in the grief. Our truly great war Prime Minister, Winston Churchill was also known to have a stutter. Just imagine the thoughts of Adolf Hitler, the strong and confident public speaker, as he planned to attack the British Isles, a nation led by two people who had a stutter. He must have thought it would be a walkover - how wrong could he have been?
Do not hide behind your stutter; do not accept second best, the answers and solutions are out there, you just need to have the guts to find them.
OETA story on big gift from The George Kaiser Family Foundation aired on 12-23-09.
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