Hi! I'm Bonnie. I am 46, I was born deaf. I grew up in oral schools when I was younger - but graduated from the Model Secondary School for the Deaf in Washington DC. Then went to college in Florida. I use sign language for my principle communication. I have always felt my deafness chose me, I would not have chosen to live as a deaf person, if I had gotten to choose..... Recently I took a course called Avatar®. It is a course that helps you live deliberately. Avatar opened my awareness to a whole different world out there... I decided that I would attain one of my lifetime goals - to be hearing. I was not sure how that would happen - outside of a miracle from God.... Soon after deciding this, I heard about Cochlear Implants. I did a lot of research, mostly on the web and decided this procedure was for me. 10 months later - I had my surgery. I was initially inspired by a site on the web, that told the story of a young man named Jeff - who like me, was born deaf, and is now hearing lots of things with his new implanted advanced technology. Go to Jeff's Site! So I wanted to do the same thing - tell my story - help others know that it is possible to live your dreams and share my Cochlear Implant experience with you. This picture was taken 8 days after my surgery.   What do I hear now?