This will not shock anyone who knows me: I have a tendency to talk too fast. Strike that, I can talk way too fast. As a result, I can be a little difficult to follow one-on-one.

At one point in the sixth grade my teacher thought I needed a speech therapist. After several weeks, the speech therapist came to the conclusion that I simply talked too fast.

I definitely make a conscious effort to slow down but I’ve got to be honest. It’s a lot easier said than done.

I can’t speak for anyone else that “talks too fast”, but from my perspective I’m normal.

Over the years, I’ve had people ask me how I think after they’ve read something I’d written. It’s an impossible question to answer because to do so I’d have to know how everyone else thinks to provide a baseline of sorts.

Behavioral scientists who deal with what prompts us to act in a certain way or scientists who study the brain like an automotive engineer studies the internal combustion engine, can’t really answer that question with absolute certainty.

Virginia Garrett, my high school English that tried to convince me I should try to make a living writing sonnets, also had a problem with me talking fast as.

Her answer was to have me try out for a bit part in the production of “It’s a Grand Old Flag.”

Even though it was her idea, she said she was surprised given how I slowed down delivering my lines as well as spoke clearly and distinctly.

Mrs. Garrett asked why I couldn’t do the same in class.

I told her because usually I was trying to keep up with what I was thinking while trying to anticipate the next question. With the play, all I was thinking about was following a memorized script.

The second I stopped talking, I thought maybe I’d shared too much information.

Mrs. Garrett just smiled saying “she had plans for me.”

The next year I found out what her plan was.

Mrs. Garrett wanted me to try out for the male lead of Walter in the senior play production of Woody Allen’s “Don’t Drink the Water.” I was mortified. When most of my classmates heard about it they thought it was an absurd idea.

I honestly didn’t think I had a chance given everyone including Mrs. Garrett seemed to have anointed a classmate for the lead based on his acting skills.

No one was more surprised than me following the tryouts that Mrs. Garret decided to double cast the top four roles with me as one of the Walters. I was shocked but not as much as I was minutes after the cast was announced Mrs. Garrett was informed by the other “Walter” that if he had to share the role — especially with someone like me who he made it clear obviously had no stage presence — he wasn’t going to do it.

Without missing a beat, Mrs. Garrett said that was fine as I was capable of being “Walter” in both casts.

I honestly wished I’d never shown up. I never really wanted to be in the play because I was sure I was going to embarrass myself.

I only went to tryouts because Mrs. Garrett was one of the few teachers I ever had that if she asked me to do something out of my comfort zone I’d do it without hesitation.

I was now faced with the prospect of sinking the production and making a fool out of myself in front of at least six audiences.

Long story short, I stunned almost everyone including myself. The only person I didn’t stun was Mrs. Garrett who every time we crossed paths after I graduated and managed to get some type of journalism honor would admonish me that it was time to do serious work such as John Milton did writing sonnets. When she made such statements is the only time I ever thought she might be mildly deranged except for when she announced I had the lead in the play. That’s when I thought she was certifiably off her rocker.

Several years later, I asked Mrs. Garrett why she cast me as Walter. She took me back to my junior year and the conversation we had after “It’s a Grand Old Flag.”

Mrs. Garrett told me it was because how I explained how my mind worked. She said it was clear to her why I struggled to slow down talking in certain situations and that she figured based on what I told her I would be able to handle the role as well as gain confidence that there was nothing wrong with me being me.

At the time I honestly thought her point was a little off because right out of high school I successfully ran for school board beating the nearest candidate — the four-term incumbent — by 421 votes.

The confidence she was talking about, though, was not about tackling challenges but to feel comfortable with who I was given few of us are true carbon copies of anyone else.

If those of us who are square pegs stopped trying to squeeze into round holes and those trying to hammer square pegs into round holes let ourselves and everyone else be who they are we’d all be better off.

This column is the opinion of editor, Dennis Wyatt, and does not necessarily represent the opinions of The Bulletin or 209 Multimedia. He can be reached at dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com