Life and Deaf - Fighting the System

Scooter lived on a different time schedule than normal humans right from the beginning, fighting sleep in the evening and awakening in the morning. It was always a struggle getting him to pre-school on time. Sonny was accepting of the differences and struggles involved in having a handicapped child, actually still a baby in Scooter’s case, in school. After she left our new teacher was one of those rigid disciplinarians. What we today call a control-freak. This was not a good match for a class of multi- handicapped, multi-aged, very young preschoolers.

Scooter’s daddy Ray dropped him off to school on his way to work. The first time they arrived late, daddy got a warning. The second time the door was locked. And Miss L. wouldn’t open it. “You need to go to the office for a pass,” she yelled through the door. Daddy Ray flipped. He has a hairy temper when aroused.

“Who do you think I am? One of your students? A misplaced hearing aid was the cause. What good would it have done bringing a deaf kid to school without his hearing aid? Who do you think YOU are? The principal’s going to hear about this.”

Time passed. Things settled down, but the all the parents were grumbling about Miss L.s rigidity and lack of compassion. Concern was growing like an inflamed boil getting ready to fester. Then it burst. One day I dropped in unexpectedly to drop something off for my son. The door wasn’t locked, (We’d found that safety regulations forbade locked doors.)  I entered, looked around for my son. “Where’s Scooter?” I asked.

There was a strange look on here face. “Oh my God!” popped out, as she raced to the closet door and yanked it open. “Another student grabbed a toy away from Scooter, so he hit him. I put him in there to think about what he’d done.”

“You what?!” I was steaming. Another locked door? This time a closet? You’re going to hear from the superintendent about this.” I grabbed Scooter and left.

Next time – Hippie Days