Like most mothers, when she found out about Abby's growing deafness, Beth blamed herself. Why hadn't she been able to see it sooner? Abby was four and still barely talked except one or two words and she didn't seem to pay attention to a person unless they were standing in front of her. Beth knew there had been something about her little girl, but she hadn't known what.

She kicked herself repeatedly for not having guessed that it was that Abby was having a hard time hearing.

But once she got over her own self-loathing – as much as she possibly could – Beth, and Daryl, dove right into helping Abby, as well as themselves and their family, adjust. There was nothing else to do. This was something God felt that Abby, Beth and the Dixon family could handle and Beth would not prove Him wrong.

Shannon looked to the clock and then to those gathered in the room. Eleven. Not a bad crowd. Even though they had put notices and announcements in four communities about tonight's free class offering at the community center, eleven was the usual crowd – sometimes even less; rarely more. Unfortunately, most people just didn't see the need to know sign language. Or maybe, it was fortunate that they didn't have a need to learn it.

Looking to the clock once more, she then looked to Connie standing next to her.

"Want to get started?" Connie signed.

"Let's," Shannon agreed with a nod of her head. She took a deep breath and looked to those gathered with a smile, opening her mouth to speak, but before she could even form a word, a boy of around six or seven burst into the room, breathless.

"Wait!" He exclaimed. "We're coming!"

Shannon and Connie both looked to the boy and then a moment later, a rather large group came behind him.

"I'm so sorry we're late," a blonde woman stepped forward, breathless as well. "We had to wait for my husband to get off of work."

Shannon smiled, stepping forward. "You're not late at all. We were just about to begin."

The blonde smiled with relief. "I'm Beth Dixon."

"Shannon and this is Connie."

Connie stepped forward, smiling as well, and the women all shook hands.

"This is my husband, Daryl. Our sons, Hunter and Luke, my parents, Hershel and Annette, my brother, Shawn, my sister Maggie and her husband, Glenn, and my brother-in-law, Merle," Beth made the introductions of everyone who had come into the room then, too; Connie making sure that she kept her eyes on Beth's lips the entire time so she would be able to know the names as well.

"And this is Abby," the boy who had first burst into the room – Hunter – said, pointing to the little girl in Daryl's arms with a big grin.

"Hello, Abby," Shannon smiled, looking at the hearing aids the girl was wearing. "How are you today?" She asked, signing at the same time so the girl – and her family – could all see.

Abby just smiled shyly, leaning her head closer to her dad's.

Beth looked to the large group. "Why don't you get yourselves settled?"

Annette smiled. "Sounds good. Alright everyone. Let's go." She began ushering everyone to the open seats.

Beth knelt down in front of Hunter. "Remember what we talked about?"

Hunter sighed heavily. "I know, mama. I want to learn, too."

"I know you do," Beth smiled. "Go on."

She stood again and came to Daryl's side.

"The doctor told us she's got about thirty percent in each ear," Daryl was telling the two women. "And she's goin' to be losin' a little bit more as she keeps growin' up."

"Was she born with full hearing?" Shannon asked.

"We actually aren't sure," Beth shook her head. "Our doctor in Atlanta suggested that she might have had her full hearing or she hadn't and the doctors, when she had been born, had just missed it."

"He also told us that Abby has been steadily losin' her hearin', but she had thought it was all normal."

"She's taught herself to read lips," Beth added. She swallowed a thickness in her throat. "She had gotten so good at it… we weren't able to tell something was wrong right away…"

Beth hated admitting such a thing. What these two women must think of her. A mom who wasn't able to tell that her daughter was having such a hard time hearing.

Connie began signing then and Shannon spoke.

"My parents weren't able to tell either right away. I was very good at reading lips, too."

Abby smiled at that – a small, stilly shy, one – and Connie smiled, too, when she saw it.

Connie took her hand – holding it up with all five fingers spread, and made a circle with it around her face, as if swiping it, and then pointed to Abby.

"Pretty girl," Shannon spoke for Connie. "Can you do that?"

Abby looked to Daryl and Beth, who both gave her encouraging smiles, and straightening herself up in Daryl's arms, she lifted her hand and mirrored Connie's actions. All of the adults smiled as they watched her.

"Children are sometimes able to pick it up so much faster than adults," Shannon then told Daryl and Beth; as if warning them.

"Well, the whole family is here to learn and we're going to learn," Beth said with determination.

"Anythin' we gotta do to be able to talk to Abby," Daryl added.

Connie smiled and signed as Shannon spoke. "That's all you need. The wanting to learn and the support for Abby."

"Alrigh'!" Merle suddenly exclaimed and clapped his hands once. "Let's get this show on the road!"

"Let's get this show on the road!" Hunter parroted.

"'m gonna apologize for my brother now," Daryl said to the two women, who both laughed.

Daryl bent down and set Abby on her feet and she reached up, taking Beth's hand, who gave it a squeeze as they made their way over to the open seats the family had left for them.

"Are you ready for this, pretty girl?" Beth asked, swiping her hand in a circle around her face like both Connie and Shannon had already done.

Abby beamed and swiped her hand over her face as she nodded eagerly.