It’s been said that the universal language of love is French. I’ve also heard that the city of love is Rome…I beg to differ. You see, Francais does have some pretty sweet inflections and accents and some words that can sound lovely if they are coming from a tall, dark and handsome Frenchman. But besides those few components, I tend to believe that Sign Language is the most beautiful language in the world.
Even before I came on the race, I have been intrigued by sign language. Now that I have the opportunity to work with a dozen or so boys at a deaf school, I am even more infatuated with the language and the people who use it to communicate on a daily basis.
My first day at the deaf center was not only mind-blowing, but also heartbreaking. The very first impression I got from the boys at the center was that they were so full of love and joy. This was the mind-blowing part. All I know, is that if I were deaf and unable to communicate with a majority of the population around me, I would not only be miserable, but I would not show other people sincere love after watching them do something I know I could never do. That’s the heartbreaking part, being so wrapped up in my own desires to pursue what I thought was a “useful” language (French) and not care about a language that has more heart behind it. It broke my heart when I saw the passion and excitement the boys got when they tried to communicate with me followed by a half-hearted smile when they realized I was just like everyone else that comes to see them, void of their love language. I call it a love language because if you do not feel the spirit behind the language, you are not talking to the right people.
Alfredo has got to be one of the most loving boys I have ever met. He’s 9-year-old and was born deaf. I’m not quite sure what his story is regarding his parents but somehow he was dropped off at the deaf center for the people there to take care of him because his parents either couldn’t, or just simply didn’t want to. The moment I walked into his classroom, he stood up, smiled at me, signed something that I still don’t know, and grabbed a chair from the front of the room for me to sit on. He pulled it beside him so I could share a desk with him during our lesson.
It is probably safe to say that I learned way more than the boys did in that classroom. Not only did I learn what the Spanish words for onion and pepper were, but I learned so many words in sign language, like vegetables, coffee, tea, flower, bed, dog and so many more. We played a game that taught us the words for various foods, which was awesome because if I am going to be able to speak a new language, the first thing I want to know is where the bathroom is and where the food is. I now find myself wanting to sign words to people if I don’t know the name for the word in Spanish. But, clearly that does not do me any good either, unless I am at the deaf center.
After our lesson, we were free to eat lunch and then play for the rest of the day. I found out very quickly that the boys LOVE sunglasses and cameras. Once they saw I could take pictures of them, they kept signing for me to let them take pictures of me with them. It was beautiful. Alfredo and Rosendo were the most excited to be in the pictures with me. But, as much as I enjoy taking pictures, it kind of ruined the experience for me because the boys would stop talking to each other to pose and wouldn’t start up again unless I put the camera away. So, that’s exactly what I did because all I wanted to do for the last couple hours was watch them interact with each other.
