So
what do you think? That I'm cute? That I'm smart? That I remind you of
a movie? Can you tell from my pictures that I'm deaf? Most kids are surprised
to learn that I can't hear them when they talk to me, at least not with
my ears. I can hear them with my heart, though...at
least the important things that they tell me. I know when they're feeling
sad, or frustrated, or lonely, or angry, or when they're so happy they
just want to play with a puppy. It doesn't take ears to learn about those
important feelings. It takes a big heart, and I have a giant one.
Not
too long ago I was born--with a pure white body and soft, silky ears that
never learned how to hear. Pretty soon I developed black spots on the white-spots
like polka dots. People tell me that I'll have even more of them when I'm
a grown-up dog. I guess you could say that my polka dots are a visible
difference, and that my deafness is an invisible difference. I may not
look like or hear like puppies you may know, but I sure do feel a lot like
them. I love to chew socks, and shoes, and just about anything else I can
put in my mouth. I love to jump, and run very fast, and slide across smooth
floors. I love to cuddle up in a small ball and fall asleep in children's
laps. I love to do all of those things, but do you want to know what I
love the best? Having friends like you, that's what, so I'm very happy
that you decided to visit my page.
Have
you noticed that people think puppies are the greatest? All kinds of puppies.
Long ones and tiny ones and spotted ones. Ones that have hairs that fall
out and hairs that grow long. It doesn't seem to matter how different they
are from one another. Even when they grow up to be dogs, people accept
them for the way they are. People like babies, too, even when the babies
have differences that you can see. The problem is that when babies with
differences grow up to be kids, sometimes they have a hard time being accepted
by other children.
Do
you know any kids who have differences that you can see? What about differences
that are hidden, like those that make it harder for them to play, or more
difficult for them to stay healthy? Sometimes children don't tell anybody
about those types of differences. I guess they're afraid that they'd get
teased if other children knew that they had heart disease, or diabetes,
or muscular dystrophy, or a zillion other medical problems; that their
friends would stop being their friends. Isn't that sad?
I
hope
that if you know children who have some differences--differences that make
it hard for them to be accepted by others--I hope that you'll ask them
whatever questions you have. When you learn more about the differences,
I know that you'll want to learn more about the kids, too. That's how friends
are made. Friends make me happy, and I bet that when you make new ones,
you'll find that you've become happier than ever, too!
So
those are my lessons (I'm sure that you've heard them before). To be kind
to the people you meet, no matter what sorts of differences they have.
To include them in your games. To make them your friends. And when you
just don't understand something about them, to trust them with your questions.
I'll bet if everyone would do that, the world would be a better place.
Don't you agree?
Thanks
for visiting my little page. I thought that you might be interested in
these pages as well.
American
Society for Deaf Children
Are
you a child with a skin disorder?
Love and wet kisses, Kosmo |