ASL Learning – Size Matters the First Time

Some are straight, while others are curved.
Some are long, and some have girth.
Mine is stubby.

I didn’t realize this until I began to study fingerspelling. Nor was I aware of just how arched my sweetie’s is. Here I was studying a language and culture to increase my understanding and communication capabilities with others and instead I was expanding my knowledge of self.

  You see I was trying to form the letter M, only I couldn’t get my thumb to reach under 3 fingers and just peek out between the pinky and ring finger. I had to scrunch up the fingers on top of each other, which was clearly incorrect! My left hand was a sliver longer, but still not enough. Was I going to be unable to learn fingerspelling because of Stubby Thumb Syndrome? What was I to do? Would I need to strive for exceptionally long fingernails or nake nany nistakes nispelling every lexicalized fingerspelling word that contains an M? How could I teach my stubby thumb to enunciate more clearly?

I focused all my attention and realized learning ASL is a much better tool than new age woo-woo pseudotantric-yoga to develop mindfulness and being present in the moment. Maintaining eye contact while having an ASL conversation is not only polite, it’s imperative in order to be able to register all the nuances. My partner has a hard time looking directly at someone while conversing / conversating. So practicing ASL together resulted in deepening the intimacy of our in the moment connection through that additional directed focus.

Studying fingerspelling means paying attention to how my hands and body create shapes and what adjustments need to be made. As I begin to develop an ASL vocabulary, it requires being aware of my movements and face in so many ways that I usually don’t pay attention to. Are my eyebrows raised up or furrowed down properly to correspond to the phrase and ensure it’s understood as a question rather than a statement? Did I over or under emphasize my body placement in ways that impacted the urgency or enthusiasm level I’m trying to express? Am I’m signing too high above my chest (it’s hard to find space around a bounty of bosom) and obstructing view of my facial signals? ASL isn’t just in the hands – it incorporates body movements and facial expressions.*

Placement is vital. For example the hand shape for mother or father is identical except for location. Same with apple and onion. Having excellent spacial recognition is useful in ASL.

As I practiced, I realized my right wrist was developing an ache (carpal tunnel issues). So I switched to my left hand, which is likely to become my default dominant signing hand. Additionally, as I paid attention to my partner’s signing I saw whitening of knuckles being squeezed too tightly. So we both have been practicing relaxing our muscles a bit more while signing. Each time we make a modification, we’re not only improving our ASL, we’re also developing a deeper awareness and connection to each other.

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*Just a quick addendum to state that if you want to learn ASL or about Deaf Culture I am not the resource to select because those are not my life experiences. I am journaling my path as a hearing person studying this and what the process looks and feels like for me to do so. To learn about Deaf Culture or/and ASL go to the experts – for example ASL teachers who are deaf or HOH (hard of hearing). 

ASL Learning – Beginning the Journey – Why

Why ASL – Accessibility & Shared Partner Interests

If I were born a dog I’d probably be an Australian Shepherd. I say this because I am instinctively an organizer of people. The end result of my herder tendencies is that in many of my social circles I end up being the person planning the outings.

As I expanded this tendency into coordinating events to include unknown local folks with shared mutual interests and niches (such as a food truck outing for Spanish speaking Latin@ fat queers whose favorite cosplay is Harry Potter), I realized it was important to strive for an inclusive and welcoming space that incorporated an understanding of intersectionality.

In my perspective maximizing accessibility is key to manifesting this vibe.

Most of these gatherings are a volunteer labor of love. There is no budget to hire ASL translators for a free event coordinated by a financially strapped group of SF Bay area renters whose monthly budget is swallowed up by plunking down $$$$ thousands to sublease a shoe shelf to sleep on in the closet of a place that houses 60 other roomies. So the practical and ethical solution seemed to be to walk  sign the talk and for me to learn ASL. But I was still on the fence due to the longevity commitment required to become proficient and to practical physical concerns around carpal tunnel. I left the idea to percolate in my ADHD brain, squeezed in between thoughts of which crayon color to choose for my next DIY lipstick and if I should join the protests against power abusing racist murderous cops in Oakland or S.F., while I was busy doing social media promotions of my next event during the time I was keeping an eye on my neighbor’s kid and “oh, look a chicken!”

During this contemplation period, my main squeeze and I shared a relationship conversation. It began as an unsettled dispute on what to watch together. Our preferences in t.v. programs share about as much in common as Sarah Palin and Bernie Sanders share in politics. It meandered into a discussion about how divergent our passions are. Then on to an article we’d read on how partners who learn an interest together grow closer through the struggle.

We began to throw out possibilities that the other one kept nixing. Sparking chemistry like that scene from Ghost by taking up pottery? Bringing home fleas to a petless home by volunteering at the SPCA? Finally, we hit upon taking a class together that might have the potential to add to our employment marketability. We mulled over a few ideas, such as computer programming before it struck me. Folks on the Autistic Spectrum Disorder tend to communicate more effectively visually rather than verbally. We both suspect my significant sweetie is an Aspie (Asperger’s). So I suggested ASL. To my astonishment I received an interested yes as a response. It wasn’t sports related (if it’s not dancing nor swimming it’s not my thing) and it wasn’t artsy-crafty (if it’s not non-fiction it’s not my primary’s thing). We were good to go!

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*btw did folks reading this notice the ASL pic lacks ethnic diversity in its signers? One way privilege manifests itself is that folks with it see visual representations they personally relate to and are oblivious to whom remains unseen. This is one area that some ASL charts have begun to take a more inclusive approach on and future posts I will do on this topic will reflect that as well.