But he didn’t like to talk about it, or for me to touch his hair.Īpparently, he didn’t have the same hang-up with Miriam. Not just because it’s a pretty cool piece of tech, but also because I wanted to know how he felt going from a silent world to being able to hear. He wore his hair a bit shaggy because he didn’t like to draw attention to the processor behind his ears. Connor had gone deaf after a bout of chicken pox as a kid and had cochlear implants so he could hear. He’d push my hand away or duck out of my reach. He slid his hand under her shirt and rubbed her back in tight circles. I told myself to stop staring, but my attention kept being pulled back. My back teeth clenched, tight enough to crack. Instead I found myself continually looking over at Connor. I wished I could block things out that well. I tilted my head to the side to crack the tension in my neck. The only way you knew it was her child was that when he would slam into her, she’d hold out a limp plastic baggie filled with rainbow-colored gummy worms and then drop one into his clutching hand. She stared down at an issue of People magazine, her lips moving as she read, completely ignoring the fact that people in the gate area wanted to club her kid with their roller bags. Maybe the little boy got his ability to ignore unpleasant things from his mom. You’d think that would freak the toddler out, but it didn’t seem to make any impact. The old guy across from me snarled, baring his yellowed teeth, every time the kid whirled in his direction.

Then there were at least a half-dozen people wanting to take out the toddler wearing the SpongeBob T-shirt, who vacillated between shrieking at a decibel normally used to torture dogs and running around slamming into everyone with his grimy hands. The couple at the end of the row were fighting about which one of them had forgotten to lock the bedroom window before they left.

Our flight was delayed and everyone was irritated and restless. I plotted murder in the Vancouver airport while waiting at gate D78 for my flight to London.īased on the expressions of the people around me, I wasn’t the only one thinking of how to do someone in. Our trips combine the opportunity to view art and architecture and learn about history with a world-class guide, and your child will develop his or her independence and maturity while building friendships that will last a lifetime. Designed for high academic achievers with an interest in expanding their worldview, our programs have been called life-changing. Our summer programs are formulated to show the world to your exceptional teen.

North American Student Scholars for Change

You Owe Me a Murder by Eileen Cook