I don’t know where to start. Every time I recall the day of Mary’s activation, it seems like such a LONG time ago and yet I inhale, exhale and a kaleidoscope of some of the most amazing memories are still filling up my mind and heart….and it’s only been two months. It’s as if I can’t keep the camera or audio on long enough to capture every nuance of her incredible journey.
So Mary can hear sound out of her left ear now! As a matter of fact, when we place the device on, she cautions us, “no loud mama, no loud”. Wow. She could never say that before – everrrrr. And even up to this point, she has been through some hard, very hard struggles emotionally. Through various articles and information from the audiologists, we’re told that as her brain re-trains itself on HOW to listen out of the implant that the sounds she’s hearing initially will sound electronic…..like “Mickey Mouse”…..that should freak out a four year old!
So Mary can hear sound out of her left ear now! As a matter of fact, when we place the device on, she cautions us, “no loud mama, no loud”. Wow. She could never say that before – everrrrr. And even up to this point, she has been through some hard, very hard struggles emotionally. Through various articles and information from the audiologists, we’re told that as her brain re-trains itself on HOW to listen out of the implant that the sounds she’s hearing initially will sound electronic…..like “Mickey Mouse”…..that should freak out a four year old!
Sometimes Robert & I feel that maybe 2 surgeries in 5 months was too much, that she was pushed too hard as she has let us know without restraint that she had passed her threshold of patience with all of this. I truly believe that I have witnessed her rage and resentment and it must have been so hard for her not to be able to articulate that. I totally got it though it was hard working through the screams and tears, especially mine and dada’s!!! I admire and respect that our Mary is certainly a force to be reckoned with and thank GOD, the exacerbations to her frustrations have subsided a great deal! At this point, we’re thinking that the sound is coming across more naturally as she WANTS to put the implant on now, and seems to be hearing very well, even without the hearing aid on her stronger ear!
Her speech continues to evolve rapidly and more articulately. She’s glad to be back in school and we are watching her progress very, VERY carefully, taking great care to track her gains and make sure she doesn’t lose any ground. Beyond witnessing our Father in Heaven cover our little girl in his handiwork through His power, He continues to teach Robert and me how to steward this blessing. In a sense, it’s as if God is continuing to build up two big kids and our baby girl all at once in our house….and we are more than cool with that.
I have prayerfully considered for some time to close the door on this leg of Mary’s journey as her miracle of adoption has placed her home with us until we enter God’s kingdom. How even the thought of adoption was an adventure and here we are – together as a family. As for her hearing – well, MARY CAN HEAR – and what a journey THAT has been! We still have a quite an exciting road to travel with her as she continues to thrive in the full use of her cochlear implant and we help her get her communication skills where they need to be. So, I’m thinking and praying that I may go another route, creating a new blog while keeping “Mary Updates” on it. We’ll see.
In the meantime, my and Robert’s life together has been so fully enhanced, enlightened, empowered and impassioned with the blessing of our daughter Mary. We praise God almighty for his everlasting love and kindness on the desires of our hearts and for HIS faithfulness in bringing our family together, even when circumstances looked challenging. He really IS a good God and Mary is just one of the many testaments to that. Thank you for allowing me to share this part of her story with you, your love, encouragement and prayers have meant EVERYTHING to us!
Mary @ the Tennessee Aquarium
