Are You Deaf?

The man who lives in the apartment next to ours is very hard of hearing. He is an older gentleman that doesn't work, so he is home all day. He is often sitting in his living room with his front door open so I can see in. He has a screen shut, but I can still see in. He doesn't seem to be doing much in there. Probably about 15 times a day, someone will come to his door. Sometimes they just walk in, like a neighbor or a servant of some sort. But other times the person knocks. Then he yells, "Who is it?" in Hindi. If they don't know him they don't know to yell. So the person may answer and he can't hear them, so he yells again, "Who is it?" The person will reply louder, but usually not loud enough. This can go on and on for 4 or 5 times. Others who come to the door that know him will already speak loudly. Sometimes he will carry on a loud conversation with the person. Other times I hear him speaking loudly to someone in the house. Usually the parts of the conversation get repeated. I, for the most part, don't understand what is being said. He doesn't speak clearly for me.

I wonder how I will be when Steve is deaf. He is already showing signs of deafness. I often have to repeat myself. I wonder if I will just learn to speak louder or if it will take me repeating myself four or five times.