Wool Socks and a Messy House Kind of Love

Today I took a walk alone in the center of Grosseto.
I people-watched and had an espresso.
I breathed in a little of that fresh winter air and for the first time felt a part of the whole Italian thing.
Three years ago, I woke up in the middle of the center of Grosseto and thought, "What the hell am I doing here?"
And now, I know.

For now.
The beauty of "for now" is that it is not necessarily "forever".
But it can still be a happily ever after.

Jordan is starting a new school on Monday. His teachers and the school administration have helped us to be able to make the smoothest transition possible.
People who read this blog helped me to help my son.
Now, it's up to Jordan.
He's tall and wears a size 13 shoe.
It's time for him to flex his brain.

Yesterday, a surprise article popped up in an audiology online journal. A journalist had written a story about our forum and how there is a place for support online in Italy. Last week the forum joined forces with an initiative to offer support to a school for the Deaf with habilitation resources in the Congo. We will be sending hearing aids to the people responsible for managing the school. Today an article came out in Italy about a woman who is taking legal action to not pay her television bill, because the programs are not close-captioned. I contacted the lawyer responsible...maybe we can help.

Yep, tomorrow this nice, Jewish girl from Pikesville will take down her Christmas tree in Tuscany.

Never
say
never.

CHOSEN

I remember as if it were yesterday giving birth to Jordan. There were about fifteen family members and close friends in the delivery room with me, no secrets in this family:)It all happened so quickly, but I remember the first words out of my mouth when they handed Jordan to me, "I'm so sorry I brought you into this difficult world." What the hell was I thinking? I mean how pathetic is that? Yet, how true. I believe in fate, destiny all that spiritual, mystical stuff, because there just has to be a deeper level to all that goes on here other than all that is superficial in our lives.
Jen's Blog really touched me yesterday, she wrote, quite passionately:
I read on one of my CI blogs today that a woman wanting a baby from China turned down a referral for a child because it was deaf. I have been thinking about that all day long. I know that most parents don't get to pick if their child will be hearing or deaf...or have anything else wrong with them, for that matter. International adoption often gives you that option.
We don't pick. We are chosen.
This reminded me of a very touching thread that was on the Pediatric Cochlear Implant Circle on June 6th, 2007 called PREMONITION that a mom named EVA started. So many moms responded and added their own PREMONITION. I did not ask permission to post this one, but I hope the moms understand why it is important to share this with anyone who wants to listen...

... Hi All,
I, too have a story to share. When we were getting our son baptized it wasn't our usual priest, but a substitute because our priest was in the hospital. Well, anyway...at the time we knew that our son had failed the newborn screening but we hadn't gone for the ABR yet, that was scheduled for the following Friday. The priest put his hand over our son to bless him and said, "May the blind see may the deaf hear"....we all looked at each other because we have never heard that blessing at a
baptism. Of course on Friday we did get the news that my son was deaf, so I went to church Sunday and spoke with Father after. I told him that I had never heard that blessing before at a baptism and he said that that morning it came to him to say that....then when I told him that we just found out that my child was deaf, he smiled as if he already knew. I have to say that I had such a feeling of peace at that moment and through all of our struggles to get our child to listen and use his hearing down deep I knew it would happen...

...I would like to add my story as well. When I was about 8 months pregnant with my daughter, I met a really nice women at the gym. She and I began a friendship on side by side elyptical machines. Later when she was born I started expressing my concerns, and finally received a definitive diagnosis. I told my friend and she said
she had someone she wanted me to meet. To make a long story short,her friend of 20 years+ has two children who are profoundly deaf and have Usher (unfortunately my daughter is also at high risk). She led me to all the specialists for my daughter. If fate hadn't intervened and put us two exercise buddies together we would have been truly lost.
God works in mysterious ways...

...Before I had my son,(I'm thinking it was either before my daughter was born or right after)I saw on GMA the story of the mom and daughter that were both getting
implants at the same time and I was entranced with it. The father was deaf also but not getting the implant. I remember thinking I hope they show that surgery before I have to leave, which is why I'm thinking it was before my daughter was even born (when I had a job). Anyway I watched and heard the surgeon and was just amazed that
someone would be able to hear. After I had my daughter, I hired someone to come and clean my house every other week and her son was deaf. When they told me my son was deaf she was one of the first people I called. She knew exactly everything I was feeling. I guess it's God's way of preparing us...

These are only a couple of examples...Here's what I wrote:

I got the chills reading this, because a similar thing happened to me. When I was 16 years old and working in a fast food restaurant,a really good looking guy my same age came up to the counter to order some food. He was wearing hearing aids. I have no idea why but I suddenly felt strange, went immediately on break and proceeded
to cry for the next half hour. I have never had a reaction like that to anything in my life, but the thought of that guy wearing hearing aids deeply affected me.
I am 100% certain that it was my fate to have a deaf child.When Jordan was about six months old a friend of mine had a psychic over her house for dinner, I'm talking the real deal psychic. I had a picture of Jordan with me and I handed it to her. She touched the picture, looked at me and said, "Your son has music in his ears." I
can't tell everyone how much this comment helped me when I received the news that Jordan was deaf. It allowed me to perceive deafness in an entirely different way...
Another ironic thing is that during my entire pregnancy the sound of music on the radio bothered me and the only thing I could listen to was John Miller doing the Oriole games on the radio...
Jen commented today on her thoughts of yesterday by saying,
I have slept a bit and thought things through a bit and my thoughts on the deaf child mentioned in last night's post are a little calmer today. Whether or not I'd do the same thing, that child wasn't meant for those parents...for the good of the child AND the parents.
So true...and those parents will never know what they missed...