Tales of woe and loss surround us in everyday life. Sometimes it’s darkness, sometimes its failure, heartbreak, setbacks and whatever else. So I would like to dedicate this essay to my deceased crutch. Yes, my crutch. It would support me every day and help me through school as well as the dark ominous smog that is life itself. My crutch would bail me out of countless trouble and trials. Eventually, I depended on that crutch in an unhealthy way. Even so, my crutch it’s still one of the most important things in my life. Paradoxically, my crutch has died yet, it is still alive and continues to support me even now. This crutch I speak so highly of existed in the form of the hearing aids that still remain in my ears today. They're right here in …show more content…
Thankfully, a museum instructor was there who then gestured for me to lie on a metal board covered in small holes. As I lie on the cold metal next to my brother, eagerly, standing over me, I wondered if it was too late to go back. Just then, the instructor threw the switch and the bed of nails rose upwards through the holes in the board. Practically paralyzed, I felt my body being lifted up completely supported by the field nails. Lying there in disbelief I touch the tip of one of the nails to confirm that they were indeed, authentic, sharp, metal nails. Just then, an innocent little toddler, cute as a button, walked up to me, jaw agape, clearly just as dumbfounded as I. With a half toothless smile, he did what any innocent little child would do. Seizing my arm, he pushed downwards, pressing into the bed of nails beneath …show more content…
Most people believe my loss of hearing is my disability and logically that is true yet, my hearing aids were the real disability. I made them my crutch which affected my entire life but I was the only one who could kill my crutch. Only then was I able to step into the spotlight and be the star of my own life. So I happily dedicate this essay to my deceased crutch. Not only has it changed my life, but it has also motivated myself to conquer as many other potential crutches I might have as well as motivate others to do so as well. You may not know it but, everyone has a crutch. It may not be physical; maybe it's emotional, or maybe it's just something else so small you can't even see it and that is perfectly fine. The world is filled with enough troubles and trials already so just refrain from relying on that crutch. Chances are, you'll walk just fine without
In her essay “On Being a Cripple,” Mairs describes her path of acceptance of her multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis by declaring that she is a “cripple” in alternative to the more broadly acceptable terms: disabled or handicapped. Her essay is written with humor, satire, an open heart, and open eyes. Mair’s purpose is to describe her acceptances of her condition by using rhetorical elements and appeals, such as ethos and pathos, in order to allure her audience.
In Amy Hempel’s Short Story “Going,” we take part in a journey with the narrator through loss, coping, memory, experience, and the duality of life. Throughout the story we see the narrator’s struggle through coping with the loss of his mother, and how he moves from a mixture of depression, denial, and anger, to a form of acceptance and revelation. The narrator has lost his mother to a fire three states away, and goes on a reckless journey through the desert, when he crashes his car and ends up hospitalized. Only his thoughts and the occasional nurse to keep him company. He then reaches a point of discovery and realizations that lead to a higher understanding of mortality, and all of the experiences that come with being alive.
“The Physics of the Bed of Nails: No Woo Required.” Edited by Mattusmaximus, The Skeptical Teacher, 2 July 2009, skepticalteacher.wordpress.com/2009/07/22/the-physics-of-the-bed-of-nails-no-woo-required/.
What I found most interesting about Jarashow’s presentation were the two opposing views: Deaf culture versus medical professionals. Within the Deaf culture, they want to preserve their language and identity. The Deaf community wants to flourish and grow and do not view being deaf as a disability or being wrong. Jarashow stated that the medical field labels Deaf people as having a handicap or being disabled because they cannot hear. Those who are Deaf feel as though medical professionals are trying to eliminate them and relate it to eugenics. It is perceived that those in that field are trying to fix those who are Deaf and eliminate them by making them conform to a hearing world. Those within the Deaf community seem to be unhappy with devices such
Mark Drolsbaugh’s Deaf Again is a biography about his life between two dimensions of the Deaf world and the Hearing world as well as the implications he faced throughout his journeys’. Mark Drolsbaugh was born from two deaf parents and was basically forced to adapt to the hearing world even though his parents are deaf. When Drolsbaugh was born he was hearing, however, by first grade his parents and teachers discovered he was losing his hearing. As time went on Mark realized the issues he faced from trying to adapt to the hearing world. Mark Drolsbaugh quotes in his biography, “Deafness is bad. I am deaf. I need to be fixed. I must be like them, no matter what, because deaf is bad.” However, no matter what his family believed that he
While reading Mark Drolsbaugh’s Deaf Again where he wrote about his experiences with becoming postlingually deaf, I realized that I was able to relate to some of the situations he encountered, especially when he spoke of his frustrating childhood due to his disability. As he grew older, he needed to find new ways to cope with and accept his deafness. Because of his unique viewpoint with deaf parents who were not allowed to sign around him, the book gave readers a different perspective to look at deafness with. Drolsbaugh’s personal account of his life was inspirational as he grew up with a truly exceptional situation, yet was able to overcome his obstacles and become successful after he quit denying who he really was.
Laughter and cheer filled the air as the sun started to set that hot humid summer day. Andrew looked for a place to just rest. People walked by with no cares in sight, giving a friendly smile as they strolled by, not knowing his story, not knowing why he was there on that mournful day. He lay his heavy head down and try to steal a minute of peace a minute of rest. More people walk by, and a tear came to his eye, not just from sadness, but gratefulness for being alive. He gathered up his few belongings to try to find a new spot when panic overcame him when he remembered what he forgot. He rushed back to get it and there it laid; a warn down old jacket, tattered and torn. It was not much to look at, but it still kept him warm. He sat back down just
DON’T LET YOUR INJURY HOLD YOU BACK: Providing a comfortable and secure experience, the forearm crutches eliminate the fatigue and pain caused by standard crutches while allowing you the mobility needed when managing a disability or recovering from an injury or surgery. The supportive, ergonomic grip is contoured to fit the hand, reducing hand and wrist fatigue and ensuring proper positioning for safe mobility throughout any activity.
For this research paper I interviewed a mom of 2 children, who is 49 years old named Kathy Hilling. Hilling was born with a severe hearing loss in both ears. Hilling even said, “ I was born with a nerve deafness on one side of my ear, so I’ve worn hearing aids my whole life up until last year when I got a cochlear implant on one side,” (Hilling). This means that she a major part of the hearing community, and she is just like all the other individuals who are having the same problem. She loved having hearing aids, and loves having the newest technology of cochlear implants even more. Her mother didn’t know until the age of 2 that she had a hearing loss, when someone noticed she was always distracted in preschool. Hilling even stated, “I wish my mom would’ve known sooner about my hearing, so I could have had early invention and had help with speech and had had the different kinds of developments. I could have received hearing aids at an earlier age,” (Hilling). This has made a major impact on Hilling’s live because if she would’ve gotten hearing aids at an earlier age, her speech would be significantly better. Having hearing aids at a young age, helps a child in school with their education and with speech. Speech therapy is essential to start even prior to a baby even speaking. She even expressed, “If I had the choose to choose between hearing aids and cochlear implants I would go for the cochlear implants because it has changed my life in so many ways,”(Hilling). She has had hearing aids her whole life, but once the hearing aids stopped working, there was nothing she could do except to get a cochlear implant. This has changed her life in so many ways, such as hearing sounds she could not hear prior such cars on the street or the noises of fans
“If I fail, I try again, and again, and again. If YOU fail, are you going to try again? The human spirit can handle much worse than we realize. It matters HOW you are going to FINISH. Are you going to finish strong?” Nicholas Vujicic is a motivational speaker who was born with Tetra-Amelia Syndrome, which is a rare disorder which involves the absence of all four limbs. Even though, he was born this way he figured out how to live a happy life while still in this condition; he is married and has a child, it was difficult but he still managed to go through depression and now comes and talks to students about his struggle. Our school must get Nicholas James Vujicic to come speak to our students.
Before I completed this assignment, I knew it wouldn’t be easy. But the extent of difficulty this project presented me with was quite unexpected. Hearing other students talk about their deaf weekend and the way it was described on paper could not compare to living it. Becoming “deaf” for a weekend not only affected me, it affected my parents, my friends, my trainers, even my horse. Although it was a challenge, I tried my best to live my life as I usually would, without isolating myself in silence in my room, or skipping out on my daily routine. Thinking back to the months prior when I had taught my mom the alphabet and a few basic signs, I internally thanked myself. Even the tiny bit of sign language she knew made the weekend easier. Carrying
My younger brother was diagnosed as profoundly hearing impaired shortly after his second birthday. As a four-year-old, I could not possibly understand the ramifications of the diagnosis. I have been told that I showed little concern about the situation until one night at the table when I asked how long he would have to wear his hearing aids. I became nearly hysterical when I learned that the hearing aids would not heal his hearing. What I also did not understand was the effect this would have on my life. I now know my brother's hearing impairment helped shape the traits of patience and compassion in my life.
Imagine seeing people speaking, moving their mouths and not being able to hear anything. Welcome to the world of deafness. The journey for someone who is deaf can be challenging, but those challenges can be overcome with perseverance. Today I am going to share with you the story of my journey with deafness and see that if I am my disability. It is an experience that has shaped my life through body, mind, and spiritual matter.
Have you ever lost your hearing? Well, it happened to me few days ago. I felt people should start to respect the feeling of hearing. ( Now that I have experienced being deaf more people should not take it for granted. About 0.38% of the US is deaf. Isn’t that crazy? I’m going to tell you how I felt when I lost my hearing for about three days.
I still remember vividly the day my mom, sister, and I found out my dad had passed away. The day was May 28th, 2009. Our local policeman pulled into our driveway and asked to see my mom and me. He then went on to tell us it would be best if we sat down and he spilled the news about my dad. After my father’s passing, I struggled in school. I struggled to understand the point in school and why I needed to learn the things that teachers were trying to teach me. I was fortunate enough to have a very understanding English teacher that just so happened to be my teacher for three years straight from seventh grade into my freshman year of high school. Mrs. Irwin inserted the importance of reading and writing into my life. In Mrs. Irwin’s class, I was able to connect with the book Gym Candy by Carl Deuker which led me to find my own personal tastes in literature.