Have you seen the video of horses on a bridge? A wooden slat bridge crosses a riverbed, an adult horse stands by, and a colt is stuck on the bridge with two legs caught in gaps between slats. You may know the idiom “falling through the cracks”; this colt literally fell through. Metaphorically speaking, many deaf children are also “falling through the cracks.”
It’s a heartwarming video and an excellent illustration of the Silent Blessings mission. Here’s why:
Navigating Gaps
The bridge is a publicly available, common-use tool. If you need to cross the river, the bridge is right there and ready to serve. That is, unless you have little feet and limited experience. Most deaf children are born to hearing/non-signing households, leaving gaps in their experience of language. For them, the aural and written resources that most people take for granted are like bridges with gaps. Adults can navigate them, but children often struggle more than we realize. This makes children’s Bible story books rather ineffective for deaf children.
A Firm Grip
The adult horse, probably the colt’s mother, no doubt tried nuzzling and whinnying encouragement. Unfortunately, her natural structure doesn’t have the dexterity and grip she needed to save her colt. Non-signing parents of deaf children also struggle to teach faith concepts effectively. By the time they learn enough sign to tell and apply a Bible story, the window of childhood is quickly closing and other ideas are crowding in. Silent Blessings adds grip by developing foundational faith resources for children with an emphasis on visual learning and American Sign Language (ASL).
Outside Support
The colt is capable and has likely crossed many bridges with ease since that day. But in that moment, both horses needed outside assistance. They needed someone to invest in the life of that colt, to add support for its balance and sure footing. Deaf children will grow to be capable deaf adults — but will they know the faith of their families? Will they know or care that the scriptures tell us of God’s love for us all? Will they understand that Jesus came as our example, died as our representative, and rose as our redeemer? With resources designed to fit their language and childhood, they can.
More Paths
Only the horses know where their path led beyond the bridge. The good news is, they didn’t stay trapped in a bad situation. Thanks to advances in technology and God’s call to walk an unseen path, deaf people of all ages aren’t staying trapped either. Scriptures and Bible stories are being translated to sign languages and becoming available around the world. Our ministry partners are building bridges to the gospel as fast as they can. We’re focusing on those people with little feet and limited experience, so they can cross securely too.
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Like the colt, deaf children need people to come alongside and invest in them. We can’t do anything about their youth or the gaps in aural/written language, but we can come alongside with visually oriented biblical resources to provide balance and sure footing for the life path ahead.
In order to develop these resources, we need you to come alongside with your resources. Perhaps you can donate directly, or you can reach out to potential donors, maybe organize a fundraiser. Everyone can pray. Look around for opportunities to mention that deaf children are falling through the cracks and Silent Blessings Deaf Ministries is working to reach them.