Read Online A Treasury of Christmas Miracles by Karen Kingsbury - Free Book Online
Authors: Karen Kingsbury
Tags: REL036000
Ads: Link
thoughts.
“You know something, Anna?” Lou said. “I always wondered if Dad really loved me. Barbara wondered the same thing. But now
I feel like I can put that behind me. God knew that I wondered about my dad. So he answered my prayer and let me know that
Dad did love both of us. He loved us so much that he was looking forward to welcoming the first of his children home.”
A Gift for Noel
B y the time Noel Conover had her first birthday, her parents, Evan and Susie, began to notice something different about her.
She was silent. Whereas other children her age might coo or say simple words, Noel rarely uttered any sound at all.
Finally her parents arranged an appointment with a specialist who was able to confirm their fears. Noel had been born deaf
and would remain so for the rest of her life. On the drive home from the doctor’s office, Noel sat in the backseat playing
with a stuffed animal while Evan and Susie held hands and shared their grief over the news.
“I want so much for her to be like the other kids,” Susie said, wiping the tears from her cheeks. “It just isn’t fair. She’s
such a beautiful girl, and now she’s going to be different from her peers for the rest of her life. When I think of all the
sounds she’ll miss ... She’ll never hear me say her name or sing her a lullaby.”
Evan stared straight ahead, keeping his eyes on the road. “I keep thinking that she’ll never hear me tell her how much I love
her.” He glanced at his wife. “She’ll never hear any of it.”
Susie and Evan vowed that day to always be strong for Noel and to expect only the best from her in every situation. They would
never allow her to use deafness as an excuse for doing anything less than she was capable of. They agreed to learn sign language
and to teach Noel as soon as possible. And they would also teach her to read lips so that she would have an easier time fitting
in with other children in a school setting. They knew there would be times of disappointment and setbacks, but they promised
to lean on each other and give Noel the best life possible despite her handicap.
As the years passed, the Conovers lived up to their promise. While she was still a toddler, Noel learned to speak to her parents
in sign language, and soon she was making progress in her ability to read lips.
Teaching Noel to make friends with hearing children proved to be the most difficult aspect of helping her learn to live with
her deafness. As a toddler, Noel was introduced to lots of children her age but never seemed to fit in with them. Once while
at the park, she tried to talk in sign language to a young girl who was obviously able to hear.
“Want to play with my dolly?” Noel signed quickly.
The child gave Noel a blank stare and looked at her hands. “Why are you moving your hands like that?” the girl asked.
Noel looked at the girl curiously, unable to understand her lip movements, and then once again used sign language to ask the
girl if she wanted to play. This time the child began to laugh at Noel, assuming that Noel was playing some kind of game.
But the girl’s laughter confused Noel and she began to cry, turning and running to where her mother sat painfully watching
the exchange from a nearby park bench.
“It’s all right,” Susie signed to her daughter, taking her into her arms. “She wants to be your friend, honey. She just didn’t
understand you.”
“She didn’t like me,” Noel signed back to her mother. Susie’s heart went out to her daughter, whose tiny spirit seemed crushed
by the encounter.
“No,” Susie signed in return. “She liked you. She just didn’t understand you.”
But Noel seemed frightened, and Susie thought she knew why. For the first time the little girl understood that she was different
from other children, and the thought must have terrified her. After that she refused to make any attempt to communicate with
other children. She would
“You know something, Anna?” Lou said. “I always wondered if Dad really loved me. Barbara wondered the same thing. But now
I feel like I can put that behind me. God knew that I wondered about my dad. So he answered my prayer and let me know that
Dad did love both of us. He loved us so much that he was looking forward to welcoming the first of his children home.”
A Gift for Noel
B y the time Noel Conover had her first birthday, her parents, Evan and Susie, began to notice something different about her.
She was silent. Whereas other children her age might coo or say simple words, Noel rarely uttered any sound at all.
Finally her parents arranged an appointment with a specialist who was able to confirm their fears. Noel had been born deaf
and would remain so for the rest of her life. On the drive home from the doctor’s office, Noel sat in the backseat playing
with a stuffed animal while Evan and Susie held hands and shared their grief over the news.
“I want so much for her to be like the other kids,” Susie said, wiping the tears from her cheeks. “It just isn’t fair. She’s
such a beautiful girl, and now she’s going to be different from her peers for the rest of her life. When I think of all the
sounds she’ll miss ... She’ll never hear me say her name or sing her a lullaby.”
Evan stared straight ahead, keeping his eyes on the road. “I keep thinking that she’ll never hear me tell her how much I love
her.” He glanced at his wife. “She’ll never hear any of it.”
Susie and Evan vowed that day to always be strong for Noel and to expect only the best from her in every situation. They would
never allow her to use deafness as an excuse for doing anything less than she was capable of. They agreed to learn sign language
and to teach Noel as soon as possible. And they would also teach her to read lips so that she would have an easier time fitting
in with other children in a school setting. They knew there would be times of disappointment and setbacks, but they promised
to lean on each other and give Noel the best life possible despite her handicap.
As the years passed, the Conovers lived up to their promise. While she was still a toddler, Noel learned to speak to her parents
in sign language, and soon she was making progress in her ability to read lips.
Teaching Noel to make friends with hearing children proved to be the most difficult aspect of helping her learn to live with
her deafness. As a toddler, Noel was introduced to lots of children her age but never seemed to fit in with them. Once while
at the park, she tried to talk in sign language to a young girl who was obviously able to hear.
“Want to play with my dolly?” Noel signed quickly.
The child gave Noel a blank stare and looked at her hands. “Why are you moving your hands like that?” the girl asked.
Noel looked at the girl curiously, unable to understand her lip movements, and then once again used sign language to ask the
girl if she wanted to play. This time the child began to laugh at Noel, assuming that Noel was playing some kind of game.
But the girl’s laughter confused Noel and she began to cry, turning and running to where her mother sat painfully watching
the exchange from a nearby park bench.
“It’s all right,” Susie signed to her daughter, taking her into her arms. “She wants to be your friend, honey. She just didn’t
understand you.”
“She didn’t like me,” Noel signed back to her mother. Susie’s heart went out to her daughter, whose tiny spirit seemed crushed
by the encounter.
“No,” Susie signed in return. “She liked you. She just didn’t understand you.”
But Noel seemed frightened, and Susie thought she knew why. For the first time the little girl understood that she was different
from other children, and the thought must have terrified her. After that she refused to make any attempt to communicate with
other children. She would
Similar Books
