Grandpa is Deaf

Our Grandpa is going deaf. At the start, it merely meant raising our voices at Grandpa. Now, it is not enough to raise our voices anymore.

The problem is that Grandpa does not believe he has a hearing problem. He believes that we have a speaking problem. We speak too softly. We did not worry too much because oh well... after a bit of shouting and gesticulating, we usually get our message across.

Lately though, we have all become concerned. Grandpa has become socially isolated. He used to hang out with a group of guys (about 20 years younger than his 80 years). They would go to Johore Bahru together. They would chill out on treks, go pick wild durians at unearthly hours.

These days, Grandpa just wants to hang out at home. He now believes that his friends also have a speaking problem. "They don't talk properly," says Grandpa. "I can't make out what they are saying," he grumbles. Rather than embarrass himself, Grandpa simple stays home.

That is NOT good for Grandpa.

So, The Husband decided to convince Grandpa to go and get his ears checked, so as to get a hearing aid. Grandpa won't hear any of it. Partly, I think Grandpa cannot hear much of what The Husband is trying to say. Partly, I think Grandpa wants to stay hard of hearing so that he can conveniently fail to hear Grandma when she is scolding him. Hence, Grandpa has no intention to get a hearing aid.

I am still watching how the saga will unfold.