Deaf Club

I went to Deaf Club today with a friend of mine, J, that's also learning BSL. This particular Deaf Club is held once a month is aimed at helping BSL learners get a firmer grasp on the language.

I was very, very nervous before going. Also extremely excited. After all, this would be the first time that I really socialised with other deaf people. Would I be welcomed? Would my signing be good enough? Would I be looked down upon because I still have some hearing?

But I needn't have worried. Everyone was extremely welcoming, and didn't mind repeating what they had signed or getting another hearing person to say what they had signed. There were BSL students from all levels - ranging from level 1 through level 4.

For the first few hours J and I sat back and watched what was going on, taking in all the new signs and trying to figure out what they meant. Then we joined in and started to sign with people. One guy was absolutely hilarious and had me in fits of giggles.

I did find that I only understood about 1/4 of what was going on, but I loved it. It has made me realise how much I still have to learn though. I'm just a beginner, my signing isn't smooth and I'm still translating from english to BSL or vice versa. It will take a long time before I'm fluent.

Luckily there's some awesome people out there that are very patient and are more than happy to help all us BSL learners.

There's a Christmas dinner being held next month which I'd like to go to. Will have to make sure I'm free, it should be good fun.

In the meantime, I need to practice my signing so I'm not left asking 'could you please repeat that?' every two minutes.

I will master this language!

Deaf Girl