Fic: Bird of Another Color
Title:Bird of Another Color
Rating:G
Fandom:Supernatural & Switched at Birth
Prompt:Counseling
Warnings:None
Summary: Deaf!Dean Verse Meta. A letter was sent to Dean by a nine year old deaf girl in Kansas City who was doing a project on heroes. Sadly, the letter got lost in a lot of shuffling and wasn't found until recently. Dean figured that the girl, Daphne Vazquez deserved some answers to her questions.
Miss Vazquez -
First I must apologize for not replying to the very nice letter you sent me in the summer of 2004. It was addressed to my old school in Maryland, even though I was living in California at the time. My mother, Elisa Coulter, who worked for the school had the letter and it got lost in a shuffle of Christmas Cards and photographs, were it remained for the past eight years. Again, I am very sorry for not finding your letter in time and I hope my lack of reply didn't hinder your project on heroes. Since it has taken me so long to find your letter, I decided the least I could do would be to answer your questions.
What is your favorite food?
My favorite food of all time is my grandmother's bread pudding. I can't tell you what's in it, due to it being a family secret. When I got ready to head for Stanford, my gran asked me if there was anything I needed, and I told her yes, there was - I needed the recipe for the pudding. Which she gave to me on the condition I share it with no one until she or her daughter, my mom, approved of them knowing. It's an extremely rich form of the dessert and when we have carry-in lunches or sides-dinners with the neighbors, at least five people will say to me 'you're bringing that bread pudding, right?' - I think if I didn't bring it, I'd get complaints!
Who is your favorite sports team?
It depends on the sport. I was born a KC Royals fan in baseball and converted to the cult of the Baltimore Orioles when I was ten. I have yet to be brought into the Texas Rangers fold, despite my coworkers many attempts - but we have reached the agreement that as long as I do not root for the Yankees or Red Sox, I am fine.
In football, I am, of course, a Ravens fan, though usually covertly and I'll root for the Cowboys as long as they're not playing the Ravens.
And while I may be a Stanford graduate, when it comes to college sports, I am and will always be a Jayhawks fan. Rock Chalk!
What's your favorite book?
Oh, to have more time to read! I suppose the book I could read over and over again is The Fellowship of the Ring. I try to read it once a year, if I can - one time I started to read it in February and didn't get it finished until October!
Was it hard being a gymnast?
Yes. It was very hard at times. I didn't mind the grueling hours or the time lost to traveling, what bothered me the most were people who thought I didn't have a right to be competing on the same level with 'hearing' gymnasts. This is what kept me off two Olympic teams - yet oddly they never had a problem with me being on a World Championship team. How this logic works, I still have no idea, all these years later. But I did have one advantage to all the other gymnasts competing - I never had to drown out the roar of crowd - mother nature had already taken care of that for me.
What was your favorite city you visited while doing Gymnastics?
Internationally, my favorite city was Stuggart, in Germany - a lot of wonderful things happened in that city, and the food was amazing as well.
In the States, my favorite place I went was Oklahoma City - I can't think of another city full of as many friendly people as I found there.
Do you have any pets?
I have two pets - one is a rock that I found in Yellowstone National Park when I was fourteen and the other is a cat. The cat was found at a local animal shelter - he'd been stuck there for a while and well, why anyone wouldn't want a cat that was already housebroken is beyond me.
Now if he would stop taking naps on the stairs, everything would be good. His name is Leroux - this was his name when we got him, and believe it or not, he actually comes when called!
The rock doesn't have a name, other than 'Dust Catcher' or 'Ow' - due to its habit of falling off the shelf where it sits.
What is the best advice you've ever been given?
When setting out to fulfill your dreams, be prepared to adjust your sails.
I realized what this meant in the middle of my first year of medical school; most parents weren't going to want to take their children to a deaf pediatrician or surgeon - but becoming an anesthesiologist proved to be rewarding in its own way. Make no mistake, I still encounter plenty of people who think I've got no right to be doing the work that I am. You'll find this in any field, unfortunately. I've learned to let it go most of the time - the sting is always there, no matter how many times I've come across it.
So there you are, questions answered. Although you're probably wondering how I knew to send this reply care of Kennish Car-wash in Leawood, Kansas. Answer: I watch the news. I have also read Kathryn Kennish's book Switched at Birth: The True Story of a Mother's Journey. I can't even begin to imagine what utter chaos it must have been. It also inspired me to stop putting off the book my mother and several others have been badgering me to write for years now. When it's finished, I'll send you a copy - I may even include your wonderful letter, if that's all right with you.
I wish you and you friend Emmett good luck with your junior year of high school.
Sincerely Yours,
Dean M. Coulter
Austin Texas, September 10, 2012
P.S. Yes, I will autograph the book when I send it.
Rating:G
Fandom:Supernatural & Switched at Birth
Prompt:Counseling
Warnings:None
Summary: Deaf!Dean Verse Meta. A letter was sent to Dean by a nine year old deaf girl in Kansas City who was doing a project on heroes. Sadly, the letter got lost in a lot of shuffling and wasn't found until recently. Dean figured that the girl, Daphne Vazquez deserved some answers to her questions.
Miss Vazquez -
First I must apologize for not replying to the very nice letter you sent me in the summer of 2004. It was addressed to my old school in Maryland, even though I was living in California at the time. My mother, Elisa Coulter, who worked for the school had the letter and it got lost in a shuffle of Christmas Cards and photographs, were it remained for the past eight years. Again, I am very sorry for not finding your letter in time and I hope my lack of reply didn't hinder your project on heroes. Since it has taken me so long to find your letter, I decided the least I could do would be to answer your questions.
What is your favorite food?
My favorite food of all time is my grandmother's bread pudding. I can't tell you what's in it, due to it being a family secret. When I got ready to head for Stanford, my gran asked me if there was anything I needed, and I told her yes, there was - I needed the recipe for the pudding. Which she gave to me on the condition I share it with no one until she or her daughter, my mom, approved of them knowing. It's an extremely rich form of the dessert and when we have carry-in lunches or sides-dinners with the neighbors, at least five people will say to me 'you're bringing that bread pudding, right?' - I think if I didn't bring it, I'd get complaints!
Who is your favorite sports team?
It depends on the sport. I was born a KC Royals fan in baseball and converted to the cult of the Baltimore Orioles when I was ten. I have yet to be brought into the Texas Rangers fold, despite my coworkers many attempts - but we have reached the agreement that as long as I do not root for the Yankees or Red Sox, I am fine.
In football, I am, of course, a Ravens fan, though usually covertly and I'll root for the Cowboys as long as they're not playing the Ravens.
And while I may be a Stanford graduate, when it comes to college sports, I am and will always be a Jayhawks fan. Rock Chalk!
What's your favorite book?
Oh, to have more time to read! I suppose the book I could read over and over again is The Fellowship of the Ring. I try to read it once a year, if I can - one time I started to read it in February and didn't get it finished until October!
Was it hard being a gymnast?
Yes. It was very hard at times. I didn't mind the grueling hours or the time lost to traveling, what bothered me the most were people who thought I didn't have a right to be competing on the same level with 'hearing' gymnasts. This is what kept me off two Olympic teams - yet oddly they never had a problem with me being on a World Championship team. How this logic works, I still have no idea, all these years later. But I did have one advantage to all the other gymnasts competing - I never had to drown out the roar of crowd - mother nature had already taken care of that for me.
What was your favorite city you visited while doing Gymnastics?
Internationally, my favorite city was Stuggart, in Germany - a lot of wonderful things happened in that city, and the food was amazing as well.
In the States, my favorite place I went was Oklahoma City - I can't think of another city full of as many friendly people as I found there.
Do you have any pets?
I have two pets - one is a rock that I found in Yellowstone National Park when I was fourteen and the other is a cat. The cat was found at a local animal shelter - he'd been stuck there for a while and well, why anyone wouldn't want a cat that was already housebroken is beyond me.
Now if he would stop taking naps on the stairs, everything would be good. His name is Leroux - this was his name when we got him, and believe it or not, he actually comes when called!
The rock doesn't have a name, other than 'Dust Catcher' or 'Ow' - due to its habit of falling off the shelf where it sits.
What is the best advice you've ever been given?
When setting out to fulfill your dreams, be prepared to adjust your sails.
I realized what this meant in the middle of my first year of medical school; most parents weren't going to want to take their children to a deaf pediatrician or surgeon - but becoming an anesthesiologist proved to be rewarding in its own way. Make no mistake, I still encounter plenty of people who think I've got no right to be doing the work that I am. You'll find this in any field, unfortunately. I've learned to let it go most of the time - the sting is always there, no matter how many times I've come across it.
So there you are, questions answered. Although you're probably wondering how I knew to send this reply care of Kennish Car-wash in Leawood, Kansas. Answer: I watch the news. I have also read Kathryn Kennish's book Switched at Birth: The True Story of a Mother's Journey. I can't even begin to imagine what utter chaos it must have been. It also inspired me to stop putting off the book my mother and several others have been badgering me to write for years now. When it's finished, I'll send you a copy - I may even include your wonderful letter, if that's all right with you.
I wish you and you friend Emmett good luck with your junior year of high school.
Sincerely Yours,
Dean M. Coulter
Austin Texas, September 10, 2012
P.S. Yes, I will autograph the book when I send it.