Thursday, 05 March 2009
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Melanie’s Thankful Heart
Last Sunday, our overseas staff was doing some Karaoke singing together. We sang joyful songs with thankful hearts. When I happened to look behind us, I saw Melanie at her desk. She was listening and copying down the words.
Melanie
Of all our kids to come and listen, Melanie is the last one I would think of. This is not because she is unthankful. The reason is that she has hearing loss and was given a hearing aid at age 11. However, Melanie often frustrates us by forgetting, or choosing, not to wear her hearing aid. So, we decided to check her hearing and see if the hearing aid was working properly.
Yesterday, we took Melanie, and several other kids, to Beihai City People’s hospital for various checkups. We were joyfully surprised when the doctor said Melanie’s hearing is not that bad, and she does not need to wear a hearing aid. He said there still is a small hole in the inner ear, but her main problem is ear infections. Her ears and hearing have improved!
Our joy was tempered by some regret. We realized that Melanie’s resistance to wearing her hearing aid was largely because of discomfort from infections. Being a shy girl, she had not complained much to us. If we had asked about her infections, we could have brought her to the doctor earlier. While most kids complain too much, Melanie complains too little.
Melanie has many things she could complain about. She has soft bone tumors in her arms and shoulder, and her feet have no toes. Arriving to LSV in 2001, her records also showed she was mentally “weak”. However, 8 years later, her grade 8 grades are as good as other Junior High schoolers. She may be a bit slower walking and catching up than others, but she certainly has a good mind.
So, Melanie does not complain. She is grateful for to be able to hear, think, and even ride a bike with club feet. Yes, the tumors are and club feet are still there. But when Melanie hears our songs, she comes to listen. She listens and copies down the words, with a thankful heart.
Melanie on Bike
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