Sign Language

I love learning new languages. It's something I've just discovered in my thirties. I had the experience of a lifetime learning Mandarin in China. It opened all sorts of doors for me to communicate with people I would never come close to, let alone understanding a whole new mindset and being humbled by the grace and patience of new friends. 


I've just now started sign language classes. At first, I saw it as another language that would be cool to master as some level to be able to communicate with yet another group of people I share this planet with. That was the only result I was hoping for. Now, barely a month after starting my classes, I find myself enjoying the course of learning more and more. It's opened me to another whole new world of people and form of communicating. 


As with any other language, the deaf and hard of hearing have a communication culture of their own too. I'm realizing so many things I take for granted as a speaking person. For one thing, there are a lot less taboos. Unlike speaking people who pick and choose to say things, I feel like the hearing impaired are more free in expressing words. In a way, it's more innocent and straightforward, with a lot less fear of 'innuendos' inherent in words and the communication less complicated. For example, it's perfectly fine to ask someone their age, if they're married or if their parents are also deaf.  I've been humbled when signing with a deaf friend and wasn't able to understand her signing until the third time and when I realized it, I was quite embarrassed but she wasn't phased at all. Not a single friendly snigger or laugh at my incompetency. I feel they're so much more patient than speaking people like me who have somewhat learnt this bad habit of being easily irritated when we're not understood immediately.