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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: Hear (07/08/10)
Hearing is a gift that I took for granted during my young life. I’m sorry to say that I even found it humorous when people misunderstood words and responded with incorrect answers.

I was raised with a cousin who was born deaf. Still I didn’t understand the life of silence she lived. She has never heard the sound of her parent’s voice nor the sound of her own baby crying. Devises had to be set up in the home for her to detect sounds by the use of electric lights that would blink off and on.

I cannot imagine a world without the sound of birds singing, the purring of a kitten, the bark of a dog, or an ice cream truck on the street. I would not have wanted to miss the music of great hymns like “Amazing Grace”, wonderful musicals like “The Sound of Music”, or the “Minute Waltz” by Chopin. My cousin “felt” the sounds of music through her hands and the rhythm of it through her feet.

In my early twenties I developed a “kink” in a blood vessel behind an ear drum that caused a "gushing” sound constantly. As the blood flowed through that vessel the sound would increase, dependant on my activities. Anything that would cause the heart-rate to increase would cause the sound to do likewise. It was a very annoying problem. I spent a great deal of time pressing my fingers beneath my ear to stop the noise so that I could hear properly. No one else could hear the deafening noise that was maddening to me. I learned the value of --or the lack of--hearing.

Whereas my problem was a distortion of hearing, my cousin’s problem was a total lack of hearing. She could not hear what I heard and I could not share her silence.

I believe, decibels aside, we do not all hear alike. Jesus said, “He that has ears to hear, let him hear “.
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Member Comments
Member
Date
Shann Hall-LochmannVanBennekom 
07/15/10
You did a great job showing the different ways one can hear. I never thought of it quite like that before. It's nice to have a new perspective on something. I almost wish you had gone on a bit more. I found myself hoping to get a bigger taste of what life is like both for the MC and the cousin.
AnneRene' Capp
07/16/10
Your point is well taken. We really do not hear alike and the scripture you referred to at the end: He that has ears to hear, let him hear has always intrigued me and left me diligently seeking the depth of God's truth behind that which I do hear.
Ruth Brown
07/17/10
A good thought provoking piece.Well done, Blessings to you,Ruth B.
Mildred Sheldon
07/19/10
I loved this more than mere words can say. You made a very valid point about how we hear differently. Thank you and God bless.
Dorene Randolph
07/19/10
I liked what you did with the sentence where you mention that you could not share her silence. This is so bitter-sweet. Thanks for sharing.
Angela M. Baker-Bridge
07/20/10
Good job...well expressed sentiments.