Hi again, Richard!  This is a continuation of my previous message to you:

RW>  My lady's eldest daughter learned sign, as she has
RW>  deafness in one ear, and a Sunday school program she
RW>  attended in Florida was very inclusive and got their
RW>  deaf members involved in all their church programs.


          Good for them!  Over the years I have noticed that some
denominations seem more receptive to folks with disabilities than others. 
When I was growing up, there were two families with offspring in wheelchairs
who attended the same church my family did.  For as long as I remember there
has been a ramp into the church... and when renovations were made to the
church hall & office area, i.e. some time before Nora was born, an elevator
was added.  At the other end of the continuum, there was a woman in this echo
years ago who said the members of her church had shunned her family because
one of the kids had a learning disability & they interpreted it to mean the
family weren't good Christians... (sigh).



RW>  HEnce, when she was a clerk at a fast food establishment
RW>  years later the deaf folks who liked to gather for coffee
RW>  gravitated toward the line she was working at the counter,
RW>  as they didn't have to write out their orders on a slip of
RW>  paper, but could converse with her naturally using sign.


          They may even have been attracted to this place because they knew
she understood their language.  We know which coffee shops in our
neighbourhood are receptive to folks with disabilities & we're glad to support
them.  On numerous occasions these establishments have attracted groups of
eight or more customers who would otherwise be unable to get together... a
win-win situation IMHO.

          While I'm not fluent in sign language, I know a lot of people who
use it for various reasons.  It's helpful with kids who have difficulty
enunciating certain sounds... e.g. the consonant blends in words like
"please", "thankyou", and "hungry"... and we still use it in certain social
situations to indicate to one another without interrupting the flow of
conversation that we need to go to the washroom.  I can also relate to how
this person's customers must have felt. When Nora was younger & still using
the stroller, I would often stop to let her observe construction crews etc. 
One day, as the two of us approached the glass door at the entrance to the
community centre, we saw a woman washing the glass. She started to make a move
toward opening the door for us... but I indicated to her in my best Sesame St.
sign language that Nora wanted to watch, knowing Nora couldn't see what I was
doing from behind.  The woman grinned from ear to ear & cheerfully went on
with her job.  Only then did I realize she was deaf....  :-)



RW>  Even if you can't do things in the "normal" way the
RW>  important thing is that you get them done, and can
RW>  live a full life.


          Absolutely... you do what works!  In our bathroom we have a key
chain with a stuffed animal suspended from a toggle switch.  Before that...
when Nora was too short to reach the light switch... we attached a bit of
dowelling to it as a less expensive alternative to the commercial product we'd
seen in the home of a friend whose husband was quadriplegic.  Although Nora's
needs have changed we're still using the basic concept of modifying the switch
so she can turn the light on & off by herself.  If other people think we're
weird, chances are they already realized that before visiting our home or
before we invited them.  :-))



RW>  Even if that's as simple as using our dry measuring
RW>  cups to measure liquids


          I hadn't thought of using dry measuring cups that way, but I think
it might work well for Nora too.  She often finds it difficult to read the
numbers on the graduated cups associated with liquids.  Thanks for the
suggestion.  :-)




--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+
 * Origin: Wits' End, Vancouver CANADA (1:153/716)