Marilyn,

I love this story. It moved me. It excited me. It taught me the horror of hearing loss. Each word is perfectly placed and expertly chosen. I just called people into my office to read it to them. We all enjoyed it. Instead of using my hands to type more, I'll just remove them from the keyboard and use them to clap. Congratulations!

Have to echo MarkTrost. Well written; conveys strong feelings and takes us to a place most of us haven't been before. In the end, I was shaking, too.

I liked this one, too. I am fluent in sign language and know many deaf people both professionally and personally. I know of circumstances like this that have actually occurred. Not only is this piece well-written, it brings an accurate awareness to a misunderstood group of people.

A WOW slice of a silent life. It makes me realize there are so many things I take for granted in mine...thank you for bringing this home to share. Well done, MD!

Whoah! Marilyn. What a punch this had. The images of bobbing yellow hats and red faces were great. The phrases I loved: "lips flabby and furious," (You don't see that every day), and: "sputtered, spattering spittle." Had to pull up the hem of my shirt to wipe off my face after reading that.

Marilyn, God bless you, for your talent and your heart.

Marilyn, welcome back. What a grand reemergence.

I recently read that we should write using the five senses - sight, sound, touch, smell, taste. This story brilliantly emphasizes the ones that the protagonist doesn't have, until the end, when the return of the missing one - sound - brings the impact slamming home.