When I got to college, I met this really cool girl in my biology class, and once I got to know her better she told me that in high school she taught herself sign language and she was planning on taking ASL (American Sign Language) classes her sophomore year. I thought, "Wow, that's really cool"; I've never really met someone who is learning sign language. It was then that my fascination for the language started. As I got closer with this friend, she would give me and our other good friend mini ASL lessons to learn lyrics of songs and other random things in ASL.

These mini lessons once again sparked an interest in a language I had never thought much about. I joined a sorority and one of my friends in the pledge class above me was taking ASL classes as well. It seemed as if all around me was this interesting language that I had never really thought about. It was then that I decided that I wanted to start teaching myself ASL.

I have always spoken with my hands (a lot) so it was not super weird to start learning how to communicate solely with my hands. I would search videos online, get books on how to learn ASL, and practice whenever I could find free time after work. After learning more about the language, I realized that there was a bigger reason for learning ASL than just learning a new language. I wanted to be able to connect two worlds: the world of hearing people and the world of deaf people.

There is such a barrier between the worlds of those who are deaf and those who can hear, and without ASL there might not be a way to connect the two worlds. I want to be one of the people that are able to cross the barrier and communicate and learn more about the deaf community. In a world mainly made up of hearing communities, deaf people may find themselves in the minority when it comes to being able to communicate with others. However, once connected with someone who knows ASL, new doors can be opened and there is no longer that communication barrier.

I will never forget a video I watched in which a man was at a restaurant trying to communicate with the waitress (who happened to know ASL). When the waitress noticed the man was not responding to her but was rather signing a word to himself, she caught his attention and signed the word back to him. The smile on his face was one of pure joy and relief! I hope to maybe one day be able to be this beacon of hope to a deaf person when they feel as though they cannot communicate with anyone.

I want to use my knowledge of this language to better communities, cross boundaries and make new friendships. I want to learn ASL so that those who are deaf know that those in the hearing community acknowledge ASL as a language and truly see them as a person – a person worth forming a new and unique friendship with.

So for now, I will keep on purchasing ASL learning books, asking my friend questions, learning lyrics to music in ASL, watching endless YouTube videos and anything else I can to learn ASL to the best of my ability. I will continue practicing with myself in a mirror and recording my signing over and over again to see my progress. But most importantly, I will never forget why I want to learn this beautiful language.