Imagine that you are a celebrity who is Deaf (you can choose whether you are a movie star, singer—anything, really!), and you ar
e being interviewed on the red carpet about your experience as a Deaf person in the public eye. The nation’s (and maybe even the world’s!) eyes are on you. Consider and explain if and what you would share about your experience being Deaf so that others might better understand what it is like, what challenges you face, and the overall impact it has had on your life.
Some people say that being deaf is a disability, but I see it as a way different way to experience life. Sure, it’s tough and challenging but it doesn’t mean that I need someone to help me my entire life. My parents from the beginning knew there was a possibility that I could be deaf and wanted to give me the best life possible. They saved up enough money so that I could leave a life where I didn’t have to have someone with me my entire life. They started teaching me oralism and manualism. They took so much out of their lives to make mine better. Then came the challenge of singing, I couldn’t hear a piano being played so I didn’t truly know what note to sing. It was my translator from a young age who found a solution. All I had to do was lean on the piano and she taught me what every signal note would feel like through the vibrations of the piano. I’m still amazed that I standing her today at Broadway performing in shows all over the world and having the opportunity that many in shoes couldn’t. So, even though it may take me longer to learn the things I have to using the feeling of the music on the floor and watching what people do or say to know when I needed to enter, exit, sing, talk, or start dancing. It didn’t stop me from doing what I love what I enjoy. So, if you are going to take anything from this, anything at all. Take the fact that you shouldn’t let on thing about you or others get in the way of what you want to do, but you let it make you want to work harder.
