Alright, everyone just stop. Literally stop whatever you are doing and just read this.
What would you do without your hearing? What would be different? How would you be a different person?
Just let that sit in your head for a bit. Do you really have any idea how you would change your life in a split second because you have gone deaf? What would change?
You can’t hear a knock at the door.
You can’t hear the sounds of cars behind you.
You can’t even tell when your best friend is calling your name.
You can’t even tell when someone leaves if you’re not looking at them.
Think about how this would change your perception of life. I feel as though I have gotten a small hint as to what it would be like. Again, as most of you know I can still hear some things. I still have the ability to somehow, someway, through someone tell what is going on.
Just imagine the lost of comfort you would have. The loss of ability. The frustration from not being able to do all the things that you truly love. I know that if my step-mom had lost her hearing she would be very frustrated with subtitles on the television (She hates it when I put them on).
So what would be your things? What would be the things that you wouldn’t be able to enjoy? What would change in your life as you perceive as the worst?
Now think about those things. Really think about them. Think about how many handicapped people enjoy the same things that you do each and every single day. Think about how even though they do have a handicap they still manage to enjoy the same activities that you do everyday.
It’s not the end of the world. It’s not as bad as you think. It’s like everything else in life. All that it requires is that you take it slow, have patience, and really just think about what is special to you.
Deaf people create music. Blind people paint art.
Deaf people are public speakers. Blind people travel the world.
Deaf people are bird watchers. Blind people are long distance runners.
Deaf people are able. Blind people are able.
No matter the action, you can be able too.
I woke up this morning thinking about this. That’s why it’s on my mind. I like that fact that handicapped people do thrive in a world that is majority non-handicapped. I’ve learned this week that yes, I do have a handicap, but I also do understand that I can still do anything that I want.
Why do we let anything in our way stop us? Handicapped or not we should be able to do anything that we put our minds to. There really is never a point where something outside our own willpower can stop us. It is really just yourself that holds you back.
I never thought that I would be able to hold a groove without being able to hear.
I was wrong.
I never thought that I would be able to take photos when I was blind.
I was wrong.
I never thought that a handicap would allow me to really experience the world for what it is.
I was wrong.
I know that half of you think that I’m crazy for doing this. Most everyone I know claims that they would not be able to do it. They would not be able to handle an entire week of this craziness.
I think they’re all wrong.
It’s amazing the adaptation of the human psyche. It is amazing how the body can react to small to large changes to itself. It’s amazing how one person’s will can be tested by something so little as watching a movie.
I felt good today. I felt like I knew what was going on around me and I felt like I could operate on my own. It’s a good feeling. It has made me really understand myself.
My limitations too. In all honesty, we all really do not have any. We can do anything that we put our mind to.
That’s always one of those cheesy statements that a public official loves to say to please the crowd, I know, but it really is true. I don’t think that they really know its true, but trust me; a person who has gone through the two most grueling weeks of his life, that it is.
I don’t really have much to say on our actual experiment. I’m doing my best to not look at the data to compare. I don’t know if I want to know. I really do understand now researchers and their desire to see a good outcome on their research. Sure, I have done a few experiments, but just for class when the only reason I wanted to get the right data was so that I could get a good grade.
This is a little different. This is ours. Ben’s and my creation. What do we do if it doesn’t come out the way we planned? I just really hope that we showing some significant data. I don’t really care which way it comes out but I’d like to think that Ben is getting something great out of this. I purposefully have not been reading his blog because I want to read them all at the end. I can’t really say if he’s doing the same for me but he hasn’t approached me about any of it so I assume he has the same mentality I have.
Nothing that exciting happened today. It was a lot of milling over my life in my head. A lot of contemplation. A lot of assessment of who I am and what I’m doing. And the strange thing is….
I feel secure.
I really like where I am. I like what I’m doing. I really love who I am. Sure, there are a few things that I’d like to change but overall I’m really happy with Stephyn Duck. I’m really happy to have come from the life I have had and I’m really happy with the way that I am going. I feel secure in the place that I’m at and I love the people that I have surrounded myself with.
It’s very easy to be upset at yourself. It’s very easy to be upset at a person you love. It’s very easy to be frustrated with what the world throws at you.
It’s hard to be yourself. But it’s worth it.
Just really look into yourself. Not everyone needs a week of silence, deafness, or blindness to be able to show them who they are. That’s just my vehicle.
Find yours.
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