Pumped: to force liquid or gas to move somewhere.

Tapped: to knock or touch something gently. 

in a window display at a department store 

that has since been bought out by another 

department store. I wore a gray crepe dress 

and a helmet that they pumped full of oxygen.

I had one line to say. I mouthed the words, but 

no one ever heard me. They tapped the glass, 

saying, We can't hear you on this side. Take 

off the helmet. Take off my helmet? I mouthed 

back. What?, they said. This time last year I 

thought I was speaking English, but lip reading 

has become a forgotten art. This time last year

I learned to speak in the dark with my hands.