Can you hear me now?.
As a child I had earaches. That is all I knew them by back then. By the time I was six I had slept with a heating pad on the pillow dozens of times, had my tonsils out, endured ear drops, nose drops and an odd simultaneous medication, foot creme. Every night for weeks I would lie on the bed while my mom administered one or the other or all three medications. I did have the fleeting thought that she drew the short straw dealing with it all. My dad was the one who clipped fingernails. The nose drops were as terrible as they sound. Head back, acerbic drops heading down my nose, nasty smell resulting in nasty taste. Followed up by something worse, for me anyway. The foot creme. It didn't smell bad that I remember but my feet were so ticklish it was a worse torture. I could not put it on myself. My mom had to hold me down and make sure the feet were completely covered. I still can't remember what was going on with the feet but the torturous tickling is etched on my psyche.
After age seven or eight I don't remember any serious issues with my ears except that the hearing in my left ear was never that good. But I was the one kid in the family with the worst foot odor...sorry only truthin'...
Years and miles and school and jobs later I was on a plane to LA. On descent, I had the worst earache of my life. On landing my head was between my legs waiting for my ear to explode. I spent a week very sick, hard of hearing and wondering if I could ever fly again. Fortunately, it seemed it was a one-time event, and typically when I fly I might have a plugged ear for an hour or two until the eventual "pop". Chewing gum and yawning usually fixes any symptoms that might appear. Until a week in Salt Lake City left me with a dry throat, cough and a plugged ear on the ground. I was wondering what the flight back would do. So the gum and yawning routine started on take-off and continued throughout the flight. As is typical the ear "unplugged" in an hour or so after the flight on the drive home. What was not typical was that it was the right ear. The "good" ear. To my dismay, it plugged again very quickly. The dry hacking cough also continued. And now for a week I have been enduring snaps, clicks, ringing and every other effect that happens as the ear tries to heal itself. And instead of turning my right ear toward the sound I want to hear I am turning the left. It is amazing to me how well I do hear from the left. Seems so much clearer now that the right is so muffled. It is as though I have an earplug in the right ear. I started listening to my daily dose of music with headphones at my desk. Without thinking it through I decided I needed new headphones. It was as though the right side was actually distorting....
As I write this I am still enduring the ringing. Ok, and watching a movie with the other ear....
And wondering how much I have missed with the partial (albeit functional) hearing in my left ear. As a classroom trainer, I have often warned my classes that I might turn my right ear toward them to hear better. And if they speak toward my left side they might not get an answer. That actually happened once. Despite my warning, the student was very offended that I ignored her completely.
So what have I missed? A secret? A winsome longing? A promotion opportunity? Well at least for now I have a heightened appreciation for sound waves stimulating a small button of flesh on either side of my head. A great appreciation. And an appreciation of the 50 or so years of mostly uninterrupted hearing. I can't imagine life without it.
2021 Update.
Cannot believe it has been six years. This time it is the same ear, but subtly different. After a head cold and sinusitis, my right ear plugged again. The difference being, a deeper more pronounced sensation of being plugged but hearing not completely impacted. Seems to have taken longer to unplug also. Yesterday I had a headphone blasting music into my right ear only and viola! Subtle Valsalva maneuver and it popped like the 4th of July. Once again hearing in stereo. As a Houston resident, I am tempted to blame it on air-conditioning since I have not been flying. But, I have been in the air-conditioning for going on ten years, so I guess it is just another reminder of the miracle of hearing and the joy of music. On September 26th I performed for The Purple Carpet. Only a few people knew I did it with one functioning ear. Like dancing with one foot. Very strange and somehow felt fraudulent. But I seemed to be in tune so at least my tin ear didn't impact intonation. Wouldn't wish this on anyone, but I do sincerely have a greater appreciation for good hearing every time this happens.