USA Volleyballさんのインスタグラム写真 - (USA VolleyballInstagram)「Repost from @davidmsmith15 - Today is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities so I want to share a bit about my life as a child with a disability. While being born with a hearing impairment was at times difficult, I always felt like it was up to me to make the best of it and not let it hold me back. I think I had a pretty “normal” childhood. I went to public school from 3rd grade on, being in class with all hearing kids, as I was always the only hearing impaired child. I had speech therapy through 4th grade to help with sounds that I struggled with, mostly softer sounds like s, and sh. In class, I wore a special set of hearing aids that would connect to a microphone the teacher would wear, and I always sat in front of the class so I could lip read better. The biggest thing that set me apart was that I hated school movie days and assemblies, because it was impossible for me to follow along with the dialog. . . Sports, however, were my great equalizer. It was evident to my parents early on that I loved sports and they encouraged me to join a variety of teams. I started soccer when I was 5 yrs old and picked up baseball, basketball, track and eventually volleyball along the way. My teammates may have been a little uneasy about having a hard of hearing kid being on their team, but once I showed I was capable of playing with the best of them, they quickly forgot and treated me like a normal kid. The common coaches mantra of “play until you hear the whistle” became my motto, and since I couldn’t hear the whistle, I never stopped playing. I am sure I have some sort of record for most points scored after the referee blew the whistle. . . I never wanted to be the kid that everyone was staring at, confused as to why he kept playing after the coach or referee clearly blew the whistle to end the play. It was embarrassing and as a shy and introverted kid already, I did not like the extra attention. But the only way that I could keep playing sports that I loved was to push through feelings of shame and accept that sometimes moments like those happen. It still happens sometimes now, where I don’t hear a whistle so I keep playing, but I’ve learned」12月4日 5時29分