EMMA'S Dance by Barbara Britt
I
would like to introduce you to a little girl. She is about 13 months old, and she is holding on to her parent for support while moving her heinie and her head to the music that is in her heart. This does not seem like anything special; after all, children dance, laugh with an open mouth, and speak in their own language.
However, I failed to mention that Emma has her first cochlear implant and it has not been turned on yet, and that the hearing aid for her other ear has been taken away for a couple of weeks. So, without hearing the rest of the world at all, she is so full of love, happiness, and the power to create that she does not have time to feel bad about her loss of hearing or anything else. She is free to be the very special Emma that God created her to be. She feels the warmth and power of unconditional love. She can do anything. At 13 months old, she does not realize that she is lacking anything. She does not have to hear someone else say what she should be and do. She sees a world where people smile, make funny faces, and hug and kiss her all the time. Emma certainly lets people know her needs and wants and does it with the most beautiful smile and contagious laugh. continued on page 26
