Personal Experience: Deaf Community Analysis

The quiet, adroit girl who sits in the back of the classroom and keeps to herself is exactly who everyone thought I was during the first two and a half years of high school. Then, I became the quiet girl standing in front of the entire school, making silly, mesmerizing motions with her hands. Fifteen years from now, I will meet up with my old classmates again and not one of them will be surprised by me. My heart has been in the Deaf community ever since I started learning ASL my freshman year, so when I daily counsel deaf individuals rather than interpret for my deaf teacher, shock and awe will not be the first reaction I receive. Nevertheless, I will tell my old classmates that I have accomplished the world. When asked to explain, they will be disappointed when I tell them stories that appear minuscule in the scheme of things. Regardless, I will have touched lives. It is my altruism that will define who I become. Throughout my high
Once, a girl came in and I started talking with her; she had an ASL background and knew enough signs to make conversation. We simply talked the entire time and got to know each other. I learned that she was hard of hearing, but no one focused on her enough to give her the care she needed. She struggles to keep up in school because she cannot hear, no assistance provided. Asking for someone to repeat something frustrates her to no end because people will shrug her aside, telling her "never mind". That day I was able to sit and listen to her for two hours. For that girl, I made her feel important and I hope to continue to invest in her life. In that moment, sitting there listening to this young girl who feels unimportant or even worthless, I knew every moment afterwards I would empathize with other individuals so that one day I can reveal to them the reason why they have worth, even if it seems unrecognizable to