Amy Signs: A Mother, Her Daughter, and their Stories

52. My Eyes Are My Ears

311 52 My Eyes Are My Ears Amy The day I was born it was snowing outside. Not an inch or two but plenty of snow, a blizzard that turned the world into a winter wonderland. Naturally, I don’t remember the day I was born, but Mother told me about it. I was born with two perfect, cute little ears that should have heard the sounds around me, but my ears never heard any sounds from the day I was born. Mother said the doctor who delivered me had just come from the bowling alley and wore a navy blue bowling shirt. My eyes first saw the color royal blue. Later in life, blue became my favorite color. My first memories are sight, not hearing, after I was born. Therefore, my eyes are my ears. I don’t know when or how I discovered I was Deaf. I feel so natural not hearing any sounds, because I never have. My silent ears are very peaceful, content not having to hear anything. I remember Mother telling me about taking me to an audiologist for a hearing test. I sat in a small room with padded walls. Mother told me if I heard anything to raise my arm so the audiologist could identify what sound levels I could hear. For a while, I just sat and stared, I wondered when the audiologist would turn up the sounds. Actually, he did, but I could not hear them. Finally, I heard a funny buzzing sound and raised my arm. The testing ended fast after I raised my arm. The result: I was identified Amy Signs Main Pgs 1-320.indd 311 6/27/2012 10:37:50 AM 312 Amy Signs as “profoundly deaf.” Therefore, I was fitted for hearing aids. I remember the smelly, pink gooey stuff with an “eew” feeling when it was put inside of my ears to create ear molds for my hearing aids. I can still remember what company manufactured my hearing aids: Zenith. The aids were a very shiny gold color and expensive. I wore two mini gold bars, but they were worth nothing to my ears. I had a two-pocket harness for my hearing aids. Each had a cord that went from the aid to my ear piece. One for my right ear, another for my left ear. Did I hear any sounds? Yes, I did, but I never was able to identify what the sounds were. Most of the time, the sounds I heard were like static. I don’t remember how long I kept the aids on during the day, but I’m quite sure I slept without them. At age four, I was enrolled in Prep 1 at the Nebraska School for the Deaf in Omaha. The school used total communication, which meant the teachers used voice and signs at the same time. I always wore my hearing aids during school hours, as required. If I didn’t, a teacher would ask me, “Where are your hearing aids, Amy?” I would wear my aids, but seldom turned them on during class hours, because all I heard was noise or static, and I disliked that sound. Therefore, my teachers always checked my aids to make sure they were turned on, the batteries were good, and the volume set on high so I could hear what they were saying or if they called my name. Ironic isn’t it? I don’t think I ever responded to sound, but when I happened to turn my head, I’m sure the teachers praised me for doing that. My responses must have been just pure luck! Sometimes the hearing aids were in my way, because the pockets for the hearing aids were on the outside of my clothing. When I was signing one day, I accidently caught one of the cords with my fingers, and my ear mold flew out of my ear. This did not happen ten times, but millions.Wearing body aids on top of my clothes did not suit me well, so the problem was solved by having me wear my two pockets inside of my clothes.That way, it wouldn’t be in the way when I was signing, but it made more static. Hearing aids for my ears didn’t last long, because they didn’t suit me well. I wore my hearing aids from when I was one year old until I was a third grader, about age nine. That...