My home is in Heaven. I'm just traveling through this world.

The question of where my home is has been analyzed for several years now. The definition of home is place of residence. Some people may follow by the quote, "Home is where the heart is", or determine their home to be where their families/love are.

All of my life growing up in the Finger Lakes Region in Upstate NY, I felt like it was home because of family. My house was the comfort zone from the surrounding hearing world that I had to face daily. When I don't want to socialize with hearing people due to frustration, my home was the place to isolate myself. I felt comfortable in my home, because it was the only place I felt comfortable to be myself. My family helped that to be possible. I have close relationship with each one in my family, and I couldn't imagine any better. Even through I come from an entirely hearing family, with myself being the only deaf person, doesn't always mean 100% understanding from my family. No hearing person would understand 100% about a deaf person's life. My family did their best to understand as much as possible, to help me by facing challenges with me, communicate with me using sign language, etc.

My first year away from home in Rochester at college, I started feeling doubts about where my "real" home was. I was so comfortable among deaf people who understood me and my lifestyle because they shared it with me. Although, I disconnected myself from the deaf world at the end of my freshman year, I was determined that my real home was still in the Finger Lakes Region where my family were.

Through out more of my years at college, I still pondered about that question of home, and analyzing into it. For the longest time, I didn't know where my real home was. As the title of this blog state, "My home is in Heaven. I'm just traveling through this world", fits perfectly to how I used to feel.

Did you hear it right? How I used to feel. As in I know now?

Yes, my true home in my heart, is Rochester.

I hold a deep connection to Rochester, because through many ups and downs, I realized how I really did love Rochester. I am still disconnected from the deaf world to this day, but I love how Rochester is very aware of the deaf community. I mention that hearing world is the reality because everywhere I go, I will have encounters with hearing world. Not all hearing people in Rochester knows sign language, but they are familiar with the "deaf accent", and alternative communication methods (pen-n-paper, etc.). The huge difference between my hometown and Rochester is the reactions from people in the public. When I go to Pizza Hut in my hometown, I always bring a paper that says "Pick up for (name)". Almost immediately the worker would look at me to analyze why I had that on a paper. I don't always step up to say that I am deaf. They act like they would treat a disabled person or a kid. They look at me with sympathy in their eyes. Sometimes, when I voice "thank-you", I get a startled reaction as in "You really can talk?". In my hometown, I almost always have to carry paper to write, but in Rochester I don't have to worry about that. I NEVER carry paper. At one of the most delicious subs restaurant in Rochester, DiBella's Old Fashioned Submarines, they always have a paper with options of what they offer to create subs available for deaf people to fill out and give to the sub maker. It is the same for all dining services on campus at RIT, with papers of option to circle for deaf people to request whatever food they desire.

I feel more comfortable to be myself in Rochester, more than in my hometown. My hometown treats me like I am an alien. In Rochester, I am just one of thousand deaf people that resides there. People are aware of deaf community. I don't have to worry about reactions. In my hometown, I even target specific places where I feel comfortable to go because the frequent I go there, the more familiar they will be with me. There are places I refuse to go to because of a certain worker there. I have a feeling of dreading when I have to go to someplace new.

Both of my hometown and Rochester has the chain grocery store, Wegman's. In my hometown, I usually determine a line to use by the age of the cashier. More younger they are, the more they might be aware of the deaf people existence. The older people are usually the ones who make me feel like I shouldn't exist, because they always show a form of sympathy like my deafness is such a horrid thing to live with. Do I worry about the cashiers at Wegman's in Rochester? Not at all.


I am finally to pin point Rochester as my true home, however I am in love with someone. I once experienced both, my love and being home in Rochester, at same time and I was the most truly happiest I've ever been in so long. If I had both in Rochester forever, that will be blissfully happiness for me but it is out of my control. Only the future will determine that.