Imagine not being able to speak to your parents verbally and having to communicate only with your hands. This is a reality for brothers sixth grader Dale S. and eighth grader Collin S.

Growing up with deaf parents, Dale doesn’t think that people should be quick to judge them.

“People should know that just because someone can’t hear, it doesn’t mean they are dumb,” Dale said. “Being deaf is just like having a broken arm. It is no different than any other disability, it’s just something in your way.”

Dale has been using sign language to communicate with his parents ever since he was a few weeks old.

“My favorite sign is my name,” Dale said. “You make your name based on your own personality. For example, mine has something to do with my face because when I was little I had a lot of facial expressions.”

Although having two deaf parents is considered uncommon, Dale doesn’t think that it is that unusual.

“I would consider my everyday life normal, sign language is just like speaking in another language like Spanish,” Dale said.

However, having deaf parents is not always easy.

“A good part about having deaf parents is that you can talk out loud and you know that they won’t be eavesdropping, but a bad part about having deaf parents is that you have to go to them if you need something because you can’t just yell for them.”

Because sign language is such an important part of Dale’s life, he recommends taking it as a class or just trying to learn it.

“Because a lot of my friends want to learn sign language, I help teach them by making them sign to my parents as much as possible,” Dale said. “I also teach them some basic signs. If you’re trying to learn sign language, don’t get overwhelmed and take it step by step.”