Not long after young Tom - who was called "Al" in his earliest years - learned to talk, he began pleading with people he met to give him their explanation of how everything worked. ... Ultimately, he learned to use the silence associated with his deafness to enhance his powers of concentration. ... Interestingly, the one thing that he missed most - after becoming 80 % deaf in his right ear and totally deaf in his left ear - was the sound of singing birds. ...

• Word Count: 3349
• Approx Pages: 13
• Grade Level: Undergraduate