Hi! This is my very first post!
I grew up hearing. I first saw sign language at sunday school at Brush Prairie Baptist Church in Washington when an older deaf girl had two interpreters. I must tell you I am weird not typical girl. I thought she was like royalty with the two lady seving her and the glasses and big metal hearing aid with wires. I thought Geri was cool. She showed me at Camp Melacoma the ABCs. I began hungering to communicate with any deaf person I saw, but nobody would teach me sign because I could hear.
In high school I took at WSD what I later found out is fake sign english. What a waste as everyday our hearing teacher drilled us in tences, am, is, I, and some signs wrong too.
I skip to just a year and a half ago. A lot of losses in my life, gramma died, family stole and hate me, and my job began to discriminate. I started having deaf customers, seeing deaf on the bus, everywhere deaf!! I asked God if you want me to go back to college and learn ASL give me huge sign because I am kinda slow. Sunday a woman who played celo was deaf and my silly music pastor begged me to interpret! Yeah you know how we both felt. Ok, so last September I began sign. I learned more than I dreamed!
I chuckled when I read how hoh kid, Mark Drolsbaugh, heard mumbly sentences...because I do that. I got written up at work for being angry, but I was talking normally. Then on the bus I bent down to lipread a man's mustache laden mug when he continued talking while tying his shoe. More and more until I was told in spring this year by an audi that I have 30 decible hearing loss left ear. Moreover....hold on your seat...it isn't from all my ear infections! It turns out over the years I have progressive sensorineural hearing loss that is assymetrical....and he thinks it is recessive dna.
Dude! I am deaf??
Weird girl me, I feel I am happily HOH!
I feel weird at the word loss, because I lost nothing. I have merely exchanged a bit of my gift of hearing for a bit of the gift of deafness, and I am so curious how this will make me into the person I am destined to be!
I actually got accepted for fall at Gallaudet, where I will transfer a senior. I want to become a Deaf community advocate to make changes in how born hoh/ deaf kids get educated, so it equals the playing field and every child will have a chance at the American dream!
Is it wrong to be proud of being hoh?
As I see in my hearing college acts of rudeness and bigotry and oppression against other hoh/ deaf students, which opened my eyes, I began to feel comraderie to the Deaf.
Am I a traitor?
I was laughed at and belittled by a student a few weeks ago for mishearing. I stopped being hearie that moment. I told him loudly for all my class to hear that it isn't I can't remember or pronounce the words, I CAN'T HEAR IT! I AM HARD OF HEARING!
So next quarter I plan to be brave and request a notetaker. This is good experience, as now I know the truth.
As thr hearing world oppresses, and deaf support me, where do you think I want to be?
At this point if Deaf will accept me, I am about ready (even though I have hearing) to join up.
