We live in two manufactured worlds, one of a downward spiral and one of possibility, says musical conductor Ben Zander.

Zander, the main conductor for the Boston Philharmonic, as well as a successful public speaker, graced the Flint Center last week from Wednesday through Friday.

Zander started his presentation with grim news:  he was feeling ill during the day and wasn’t sure he could carry on for the duration of the show. He proved himself wrong.

To illustrate his statement about those two worlds, Zander told a story about two shoe salesmen sent to Africa to see if they could sell shoes. One salesman reported back with “the situation is hopeless. They don’t wear shoes.” The other reported with “the situation is hopeful. They don’t have any shoes yet!”

Zander told of experiences he has had over the course of his life, involving teaching or interacting with younger people.

Zander asked if anyone in the audience had a birthday during that day, a women named Pat made her way through the fully seated Flint Center, of 2000 people to the front stage. The audience sang “Happy Birthday” to her, and then twice more, with increasing feeling and emotion each time. Zander promised that it would be a moment no one would forget, doubly so for Pat.

Nearing the end of the show, Zander played a piece by Chopin on a piano that was set up on the stage. It was to explain how everyone needed to give classical music a chance.

He also told a story about how he played this piece for inner city kids, and the next day, a young man approached him saying “My brother was shot last year, I did not cry for him. But that piece finally made me cry, and it felt good. “

Zander concluded by saying that finishing was evidence of the power of possibility, and wished that we all try to live in that world for the rest of our lives.

Ben Zander co-authored a book, “The Art of Possibility,” in which he discusses much of the ideas he discussed during his show.