To ask or not to ask

I call this blog "Just Flapping my hands" to compare it to how hearing people say "just flapping my gums" to mean they are just rambling on about some topic. I will not be signing on this blog, but if it were a video log (VLOG) which is much more common in the deaf community, I could truly be flapping my hands and ramble on about some topic. In all honesty, that might be a better fit for my audience, who will likely be fluent users of ASL (American Sign Language).

Since my audience is non-existent at the moment, I do not know the exact nature of all my posts. I would love to discuss interpreting experiences, but that has to be done very carefully as there exists a code of professional conduct which provides confidentiality for all involved in my jobs. I can speak in vague references like "When I go to a job at a doctor's office, I often talk about the reason for the visit so I'm not surprised in the office" Other time it is beneficial to not know the reason for the visit so the client (deaf person) is sure to give all the info to the doctor and if they told me before, they often will omit something which puts me in a position of having to remind the client of what was said in the waiting room. It is a touchy subject "to ask or not to ask".

This is the nature of my field. A million ethical questions that each have more than one answer, depending who you ask. fun fun. Yet, I do love the profession and if you are in it, I hope you do to and work to become the best you can become.

The goal of every interpreter should be certification. That is a topic for another day, though.