Recently I found the following: Two older men were talking. One of them was bragging just a little bit. “I just purchased the most expensive hearing aid ever made,” he said. “It is imported and is guaranteed for life.” The second man asked: “What kind is it?” The first man answered, “Five past two.” — We can laugh about the hearing loss that comes with ageing. It is a minor problem that will affect most of us sooner or later. In fact, experts predict that years of rock music, leaf blowers, and noise pollution in general will result in millions of baby boomers with hearing loss. According to a study by the National Institutes of Health in the States there has been a stunning 26 percent increase in those suffering permanent hearing loss between the ages of 35 and 60, compared to 15 years earlier. The Gospel on a Sunday in September told us how Jesus healed a deaf man who was mute.