Meeting Teal's Parents

I'm still not 100%. I've spent a lot of the day playing with my fidget spinner and working on my American Sign Language (ASL); I'm learning with Lifeprint and just took a break from Lesson 7's sentences to write this. I decided to write a piece of "Two Houses" fresh for the hop in my email creator. So this is really really fresh, not spell checked beyond what my browser offers. I've been thinking on "meeting the [Deaf] parents" after I watched a vlog from the CODA brothers in which one of the guys pulled a prank on then-(hearing)girlfriend when she first met their parents- here's the link for your amusement- they voice over so you don't need to be fluent in ASL to understand. I need to figure out if I can put videos right on these pages or if I need to use my YouTube channel. But to make the B hand shape in the manual alphabet, you basically just hold up your palm.

And the humor- you can tell I haven't been writing- I managed to switch Teal and Bea. Teal is meeting Bea's parents. Alas I'd already signed up for #WipItUpWednesday so the sharing is fixed.

Sorry for the bad lighting, but I'm signing B here.

"Okay, so B facing the viewer and then turn the hand so it's facing me, Ma'am?" I signed; I wanted to be ready for "voices off."

"Yes. No Ma'am in front of my parents," Bea signed.

I tensed to keep from visibly shaking when Bea pushed the button; lights flashing in the foyer looked weird, even though I was getting used to them since she had installed them at her doors.

The door swung open to show a tall, gorgeous black woman who could only have been Bea's mother, although. She grabbed Bea with one hand and me with the other before pulling us inside. She wrapped her arms around Teal and they stood still embracing. From behind them, I saw a shorter man joining us.

Breathing in deep, I schooled my mind to see the signs I knew. I tried to think ahead in glossing so my signs flowed, "Hi. Nice to meet you. My name is Teal. Are you Bea's father?"

He signed close to my slower speed, "Hi. I'm Bea's father. My name is George. Come in the kitchen with me."

-He must know they are typically Deaf in their greeting.- I slipped into a wooden chair opposite him at a small circular wooden table.

George pushed a piece of paper and a pencil toward me. On the top line, it read, "Don't worry if your signing isn't very good yet. Plus Daisy and I have heavy accents in our ASL from going to Deaf schools for blacks in the south; it might not look much like what you're learning."

"Thanks," I signed. I picked up the pencil and pondered what i wanted to say.

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