When my sister was younger, she came home from school one day, demanding that I take her to the library, so that she might check out books about sign language. I asked, "What happened? This is not normal for you." She told me how she wanted to befriend a new girl at school who was deaf and seemed to have difficulty in their shared classes. I checked out the books she wanted. Today, I stand beside her at their wedding watching her sign, "Through many troubles, I waited a long time for this."
I've seen so many versions of this same story. Sometimes it's a little brother, sometimes the deaf child is a boy. All end the same way. Every time I think the same thing: "Meanwhile in the Land of Never Happened..."