By Alexis Dominguez, JVC Compañero
The most heartwarming and gracious accompaniment as a Compañero thus far was when I accompanied an elderly couple to an ear clinic, there I had the joyous privilege of witnessing a miracle.
It was set on my calendar to accompany an elderly couple to an ear clinic to serve as an interpreter. As soon as I entered the clinic, Alberto and Sarah were patiently waiting and after introducing myself. The hearing device specialist attended and guided us to her office. She began by asking the reason for the appointment and also emphasized the importance of hearing and appreciated them coming in. Then she explained the series of tests that would measure the quality of their hearing to see if a hearing aid would be necessary.
Alberto was the first to undergo the test, and the results were daunting. He was in the red flag zone for hearing! Another series of tests were done, and Alberto was directed to the opposite side of the room, sitting on his chair, back against the wall. The hearing specialist asked him to repeat the words she would say, and he failed miserably. She said, “Teeth!” to which he replied and said, “Peef!” she later said, “Feet!” and he would painfully say something like, “Heaf!”. He got a 28% on that exam. Later she brought a hearing aid as a demonstration and set it to suit Alberto. This time with the hearing aid, Alberto was directed to sit on his chair, back against the wall, facing the hearing specialist without lip reading and looking at her directly. They reran the test and she began by saying, “Teeth!” and he would say confidently, “Teeth!” she then said, “Leaf!” and without trouble he replied saying, “Leaf!” the specialist then said, “Feet!” and he then said, “Feet!”, he was on a roll and finished the test with a 98% accuracy!
Then came the most joyous moment of the exam. Another test was run where his wife Sarah had to ask Alberto in a normal tone a series of questions as she would progressively walk further away out in the hall. At one point, she was approximately 30 feet away when she asked, “¿Que vamos a cenar?” and to my surprise, Alberto responded by saying, “Depende que hay!” both the hearing apprentice and I immediately looked at each other, smiling more than we had ever during the appointment. After the set of test Alberto and Rosa were able to budget for a hearing aid that would suit Alberto. Accompanying Alberto and Rosa was a gracious moment and one of my most treasured memories from being a Compañero.
