The First TEDx Talk to Make Me Cry

I've watched a lot of TEDx talks online and been to 3 TEDx events in person, but never thought a talk could make me cry...until yesterday.

Yesterday, Dan and I attended TEDxUofTScarborough to support one of his PR clients and a fellow Speaker Slam alumni, who'd be the fourth speaker of the day.

The third speaker of the day was Mustafa Alshardoub, a refugee advocate and youth leader, who I was excited to hear would be talking about living with a rare genetic condition and challenging the parameters of what "normal" is supposed to be, both of which are themes in my own talks and keynotes.

I can't remember what did it, because SO MUCH of his talk hit me in such a deep and specific place. Halfway through, seated in the second row with nobody in front of me, as he talked about unlearning the standards and expectations of "normal," I couldn't stop the tears.

He ended with: "Every one of us arrives in this world different, in our stories, in our bodies, in our circumstances. But one thing is always true: none of us are outside humanity. And every dream that changed the world was once called 'not normal.'"

I connected with Mustafa briefly over the lunch break, but barely felt like I had the words to express how much his talk moved me.

I'm so glad that he had the words to express his experience, because as he shared in a DM reply to me after the event, "the more people who share these stories, the more we challenge the idea of what 'normal' is supposed to be."

And that's definitely an idea that changes everything. ✨