The Face of Stone--Does It Work For You?

I love my language! Both of them, actually. I am more proficient at English (I was planning on majoring in English in college), but I love American Sign Language just as much. So, when I am told that a group is going to be performing in ASL, I'm definitely interested!

The thing is, sometimes I wonder who teaches and rehearses these groups, because more often than not, I've found that if a group is going to perform a song in ASL, at church or somewhere, there's a slight (or not so slight) discrepancy as to whether or not it's true ASL.

ASL has many components to it. Not the least of which is facial expressions. I mean, seriously, can you truly express yourself in ASL with a stone, cold, immovable face? Because that's what a lot of groups do. They want to look in sync with each other, so they dress all in black and keep their faces blank through the entire song. I don't know about others, but for me, it takes something away from the beauty of ASL. It's not as clear and doesn't express the vitality of sign language well.

Some groups would be really good if they acted as if they were actually alive. For me, though, give me ASL with all of it's expression. I want to see how you feel on your face. If you can do that, it would make all the difference in the world!! Sign on!