Hard of Hearing

 Many years ago, when I had problems understanding everything that was said in a noisy room, my children would say, “Go to see an otologist. Get a hearing aid.” After a while, I got an appointment. The doctor asked me, “Why have you come to see me?” My answer was, “My children say my hearing is bad. I don’t hear everything.” His next remark was, “Why do you want to hear everything?” and we laughed. After the examination and hearing tests the ear specialist told me that even though my hearing was reduced, it was not yet necessary to get hearing aids.

After a couple of bouts with acute hearing loss, I finally asked my ear doctor to prescribe hearing aids. Now he was happy to do so, as it would be good for me to learn how to cope with those little gadgets before it is too late. It has taken some time to get used to them, but they do help, although not in all situations. Having put off the decision for a long time myself, I understand that many people try to avoid getting hearing aids. Now that I wear my hearing aids, I realize that I am not alone. I now notice how many others wear hearing aids, too. It is nothing to be ashamed of.

During the 2023 French Open Tennis Grand Slam Tournament in Paris, I watched a match in which Yannick Hanfmann defeated his first-round opponent in a five-set match of almost five hours. Hanfmann was born with a hearing defect and normally wears hearing aids, but while on the court with a crowd cheering and making lots of noise, he prefers to play without them. He says that the noise is very disturbing, and now that he leaves his hearing aids off he can concentrate on his game much better. He has learned to cope with the situation and does what needs to be done. The inscription in the stadium quoting Roland Garros, “Victory belongs to the most tenacious” was certainly applicable to the tenacity of the players who both would have deserved to win. Maybe Hanfmann won in the end because he was able to concentrate better without the distraction of all the noise.

We have ears so that we can hear. My doctor’s question, “Why do you want to hear everything?” was interesting. Maybe we do not have to hear everything. “Whoever has ears, let them hear!” Jesus challenged his listeners again and again to hear his words. He wanted them not only to hear everything but also to understand what he was saying. Just like the tennis player needed only to understand what the referee was saying, while tuning out the noise, we need to hear and understand the real message of salvation and tune out all the distracting and distorted messages. There are so many things that we do not need to hear. Sometimes it is good to be hard of hearing and to only hear what is essential.



Photo: ubitennis.net

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