could you whisper in my ear, the things you wanna feel

have you ever wonder how a blind person may feel if he were to suddenly regain his sight after a miracle operation?

as you may know, my right ear has been giving me problems for a long time. so after putting it off for many years, i finally broke the inertia and plucked up the courage to do an audiogram. i was found to have mild to moderate hearing loss, and mortified by it (especially after the GP repeatedly reprimanded me), i got myself an appointment with an ENT specialist.

at the clinic, the registrar made me go through what they called a "ear toilet". i only found out the name after looking at the receipt. they might have named it as such due to the flushing out of the ear wax. but to be honest, the cleaning process was very unpleasant, if not painful in many ways. if i were to describe it in one sentence, it felt like a needle tickling the insides of my ears. it was a very delicate procedure, and i was forced to keep my head still in the midst of the discomfort.

so when it was over, i dug my hands into my bag to take out a piece of tissue.

then i heard an unfamiliar sound - something was crackling inside my bag. am i hallucinating? i thought to myself. i reached in to touch the packet of tissue paper again. the crackling came back. so i grabbed the whole packet and crumpled it in my hands. the packet exploded like a fire cracker! i was frightened.

concluding the success of the operation, the doctor congratulated me and sent me away.

feeling very disoriented, i staggered out of the doctor's office. what seemed like a quiet peaceful waiting lobby morphed into a war zone. people were no longer just opening their mouths and moving their lips, they were talking in complete coherent sentences. the television was playing music, the receptionists were tapping furiously on the keyboard, the nurses were reading out names, telephones were ringing at the counter, and doors were opened and shut as people moved in and out.

all of a sudden, my surroundings came to life. but everything around me was too loud. i could not desensitize myself from the racket. i could not wash out the noises. i could not stop them from rushing into my ears.

after i made my payment, i hurried away from the hospital. as i wandered to the bus stop like a curious child, i could hear the pattering of the rain, the roaring of the thunder, the whistling of the strong winds, the rustling of the leaves, the screeching of the wheels as the cars come to a halt, the shuffling of passer-bys.

the success of the flushing was stunning, and the clarity of my hearing was amazing. i could not wait to pop in my earphones and listen to my favourite songs. i could not wait to hear my own voice. i could not wait to sing, to speak, to laugh, to enunciate, to rub my palms together, to snap my fingers, to stamp my feet; and most of all, i could not wait to share this discovery with everyone.

it was not just an awakening. it was a rebirth - as if the doctor injected a new life into me. so i'm telling you, you don't have to shout when you talk to me anymore.

you can whisper in my ear,
and i will hear you loud and clear.