When I was in primary school, I was actually a little shy. I was really afraid of speaking in front of many people. It was my sixth-grade teacher, Mr. Bamick, who helped me get over that. That year we had to make four oral(口头的) book reports in front of the class. Some of the kids were even glad to do it, but I was afraid. Mr. Bamick realized my fear, so he told me to do a report on something that really interested me. So I did the first report on baseball.
When it was my turn to show it to the class, Mr. Bamick cut me some slack and let me read the report instead of giving it from memory. Some of my classmates laughed at me, but Mr. Bamick defended(为辩解) me. By the end of the year, I had completed all the oral book reports. It wasn't easy for me, but I did it.
Years later I realized that Mr. Bamick helped me a lot. One of the chances I got when I won a tennis match was to make a speech to the fans. It was carried live(现场直播地) and was before thousands of people. It was still not one of my favorite things to do, but with Mr. Bamick's help, I got through it. Before long, I was asked to bring my favorite childhood teacher to a national event in Dallas. I was excited when Mr. Bamick joined me for the event. It meant a lot to me that he was there.
Mr. Bamick believed in me and helped me believe in myself. It was he who helped me build the person I became.