Interpretation

There you sit smiling
   I want to smile too
   But I don’t know why you’re smiling – you can’t hear and I can’t speak.

There you sit talking
    I want to talk too
    But I don’t know how – you can’t hear and I can’t speak.

There you sit laughing
    I want to laugh too
    But I don’t know why you’re laughing – you can’t hear and I can’t speak.

There you sit confused at me
There I sit lost from understanding.

I’m sad

Now, there you sit teaching
    I try to learn
    But it is very slow – you can’t hear and I can’t speak.

Now, there you sit telling
    I try to comprehend
    But I understand very little – you can’t hear and I can’t speak.

Now, there you sit playing
    I try to play too
    But I play very badly - you can’t hear and I can’t speak.

Now, we try to understand
Now, we try to talk

I’m happy

I am no longer lost from understanding.
You are no longer confused with me.

Alas, I still don’t always know how
Alas, it is still very slow – but we learn together.