Listen. Can you hear it?
Most of us can hear something right now– I can hear traffic and the vacuum cleaner. And my dog getting annoyed at the vacuum cleaner.
In the United States, about 3% of the population is deaf. Many hearing-impaired people identify with Deaf culture and belong to a close-knit Deaf community.
But Burundi doesn’t have a thriving Deaf community. In fact, most people don’t have access to sign language, much less other accommodations.
This is a big problem, since deafness is common in the country. Many Burundians are born Deaf, while others become Deaf from improper administration of medicine or through illness.
To address this, Ben’s father and grandfather established the country’s first Deaf school in Bujumbura decades ago.
Kirundi word of the day: Ishuli (school).
But what about those in rural areas? What about those too far from Bujumbura?
My brother-in-law Danny moved far out into the hills to start another Deaf school on the opposite side of Burundi. We were able to tour the boarding school during the summer break and meet a few students.
We even got to meet the student we sponsor!
He looks a bit uncomfortable in the photo, but in real life he was super excited to have his photo taken and signed that it was “Beautiful, BEAUTIFUL!”
Meeting this student was amazing! We have been praying for this boy for five years and have had his photo on our fridge and have received drawings from him, and later letters when he learned to communicate. Now we got to see he and his father in person!
American Sign Language is derived from French sign language. I learned ASL in college and the two languages are close enough that I could have a conversation with this student as well as others we met during our time in Gisuru.
You can read more about that –and about Gisuru School for the Deaf– on World Footprints.
Africa Day 1: 30 Hours in Transit
Africa Day 2: Crossing Burundi