Let me start by saying that I am extremely grateful that my mother did not force me to have the surgery for Cochlear Implant when I was young, then have to with its consequences both mentally and physically. I was deeply upset when the boy, I missed his name, had half of his mouth paralyzed because of the CI surgery he had which screwed with his brain. I can't imagine not being able to smile and people might be staring at me wondering why I don't smile and might be just a jerk or it could be that people might make fun of that too. I've never seen the movie, Audism, and it was a truly eye-opening experience for me. The fact that deaf people thought it was just how it is, that's how I've always felt my whole life.…
In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, it is stated, “you never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” This project allowed me to follow the words of Harper Lee, receiving the opportunity to understand what it is like to have a mild conductive hearing loss. A conductive hearing loss is due to dysfunction of either the outer or middle ear. To understand an individual’s beliefs, feelings, and values a little bit better, I walked in their shoes for two days. I was able to experience some hardships that are a challenge for a person with a conductive hearing loss would face every day.…
Since I was born, I was diagnosed with congenital deformity microtia which is a deformed ear. I am also deaf out of the ear. Every day since the first person noticed the deformity, I carry one “normal” ear and one “deformed” ear. I also carry situations that involves the worries, the laughs, the cries, and bullies as reminders that I am not the same as MANY people. When I walk into class I carry the worry that if I do not sit close enough to the front of the class then I will not be able to hear, or if I sit next to the student who is a loud writer or worker, my ear would zone out to that noise.…
With change, there are always compromises. You lose your sense of familiarity, and find yourself in a sea of strangeness. With every wave, you are hit by the unfamiliar. However, you soon adapt and find that this raging sea has turned into a flowing river, taking you toward your success. Along the path you begin to see things that look familiar, and realize that you are on the same path that you had been before.…
This track season was the best time of my life, but it went by way too fast. I had no clue what any of the events were, but I caught on very fast because I started training with my cousin, He set the High School record for discus and still has it today. We started to work on throwing shot, and I got very good because we would work on my form for hours and because of that I was the best thrower the whole season. If you look at me compared to other throwers, I look very scrawny. I got 1st in most of my meets, but sometimes we would go against this one kid from Washington Middle and he looked like he was on steroids or something, he had a mustache too.…
As a child, I grew up in the rough neighborhoods of Panama City FL, walking home from school you could hear the gun shots, see the weed being distributed from one hand to the other, and grown men walking around with their pants below their waste along with a gun on the side. Being from the south, such things became normal to see on a day to day basis. However, I told myself that if I wanted to be successful I would never give into a lifestyle of that sort. I knew that I had to be better than what I saw on the streets, and eventually an opportunity came for me to do just that. It was an opportunity for me to get away from the violence, the gangs that surround my neighborhood, and the overall hostile environment.…
The wind was blowing, my attention jumping from my map to steering the canoe. I was certain I was leading the right way. Or was I? I felt conflicting emotions; according to my map, I was on course, however my team seemed to think otherwise. I felt like I lost control.…
As I confidently walked into the DMV, I firmly handed over my paperwork to the employee. I announced, “I have a ten o’clock appointment for Olivia Sestito.” The short time in which I waited for my name to be called, my body overturned with a strong nervous feeling. A few prolonged minutes later, I hopped back into my car and pulled up to the side of the building to attempt my second driving test. The instructor walked over to my side and signaled me to roll my window down after she examined my car.…
When the majority children think about their adolescent years they think about the joyful times, but I remember standing outside, with my Minnie Mouse suitcase, waiting for my father to pick me up like he promised, but he never showed. In general, I cannot remember much about him during the 10 year span of my adolescents that he was heavily drinking. My father and mother officially divorced when I eighteen months old and my mother was granted sole custody when she was twenty-two. From there things fell into a downward spiral, when I was three years old my father tried to drive while under the influence with me in the car which concluded in a restraining order which was dropped when I was four years old. By the time I was six I began to recognize…
For the first time I confronted fear of death was when I was thirteen years old. I was a middle school student in Korea back then. After eating lunch, my classmates and I were getting ready for the next class. The bell rang, and a teacher was coming into the classroom. When I unconsciously looked at front, I saw my friend cutting herself.…
My greatest challenge in coming to Wichita from my home of origin Last year in 12/25/2016, I came from Jordan to Wichita. Because I got married and my husband has been living here for 10 years, he working and studying here .In the beginning I was very surprised about a lot of things, such as the way of life, the lack of population density and also all houses are far from each. One of hardest things, my English was weak and I have difficulty dealing with people and understanding them .the…
Language and its deceitfulness has warped my mind into a permanent shape of complexity. It’s paradoxical craft allows it to connect people, but at the same time it acts as an agent of estrangement. Migrating from the small city of Vallecorsa, Frosinone in Italy to the opportunistic, enigmatic realm of America, I envisioned my 13 year-old Nonno (grandfather in Italian) arriving at Ellis Island, and immediately being overwhelmed by a scene of confusion as he watches the flapping lips of immigration officers failing to communicate with him. Nonno followed his instincts to Boston, where he miraculously settled down and shared his language and story with his new creation of an American family. Years later, when I contort my mouth in peculiar ways attempting to speak this unfamiliar language, I fail miserably and he chuckles.…
We were having dinner and I was sitting on the couch with my sister right next to me, and then my parents started acting weird and I was very confused. Then my dad asked me if I wanted to go next year to the United States. I immediately was unsure because I had never been very far from my house or from Spain, I was only 16 years old. The only good thing that I heard about it was that my sister went a few years ago, she made a lot of very good friends and learned English and had a lot fun.…
At the beginning of this last summer I realized I potentially had greatly hindered my ability to chase my dreams and spend my life in my own paradise. It turns out I did hinder my abilities to do just that, I got the letter in the mail stating clearly in more polite and politically correct words “I FUCKED up big”. At that point I had two options fix the mistakes I made or get comfortable with the idea of doing something I hated. I choose to think in a creator mindset and take the approach similar to John F. Kennedy’s quote “An error does not become a mistake until you refuse to correct it". I corrected the errors I could over the summer.…
It was August 2005, first month of second grade year. Of course it was going to be the best year I had my favorite teacher, and classes with all of my friends. Ugh! On August 26, we found out about a hurricane expected to hit.…