Nothing is going to improve my hearing. I've only got to prevent it from getting worse.

I genuinely enjoy talking one-to-one. I have no shyness about that.

But as far as my work is concerned, I see no impediment, and various advantages, to being deaf.

One of the reasons I wanted to teach deaf children was because it made me very sad that they spoke so clumsily and that they moved with less grace that I knew was possible of deaf people.

I have to concentrate more intently when people speak. I always have to position myself on their right side so that I can hear out of my left ear. I sometimes get a crick in my neck from listening. But I don't there's too much else.

When I look in the mirror, I sometimes think I'm getting old, but then I have two generations behind me so that helps puts things into perspective. I am a grandmother now, but at least my nine-year-old grandson Jude calls me Glamma and not Granny.

I'm the one by the backdoor - I am not the one in the middle of the party.