Photo by: Lorrie McClanahan

… I just wanted to blend in, to be lost in a crowd and not be singled out. I wanted to feel a part of the normal whole, and not a broken piece. I wanted to belong. And so, I wondered among the throngs of people in the great lobby. My hearing disability was invisible….

…No one knew I could not hear, as I followed the visual rhythm of those around me. I had become a chameleon and discovered the art of blending in…

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Deaf, Hearing Loss, Late-Deaf, Meaning, Miscellaneous, Music, My Story, Spiritual, Support | No Comments »

…I know now that it was not the loss of my wallet, money or pictures that I was lamenting. In reality, I was mourning the loss of my hearing and former identity once again. The lost wallet was simply the incident that triggered the grief. I had lost something invaluable and irreplaceable — my hearing. There was no number to call to report this missing item. No one to ask to have this silence stopped.

Photo by: Alex Vinter

My hearing, like my wallet, was gone for good. I had to accept it and move on…

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Family, Grief, Hearing Loss, Late-Deaf, Meaning, Music, My Story, Spiritual, Support | No Comments »