'He Smiled with His Mind.'

Helen Keller's description of Mark Twain

‘Out of His fullness we have all received grace upon grace’ - John 1:16.

This is a true story of how the blind, deaf, and mute Helen Keller described Mark Twain to her teacher, Anne Sullivan.

To fully grasp the impact of Helen’s description and the impact of its meaning to me on December 27, 2025, my 64th birthday, you must first have some background.

Helen Keller (b. 1880 - d. 1968) became very ill when nineteen months old. She had either Scarlet Fever or Meningitis, two diseases now treatable in modern times, but often fatal in 1882 when Helen became sick.

Helen survived. However, a few days after her fever broke, her mother noticed that Helen wasn’t responding when the dinner bell rang or when a hand was waved in front of her face.

The illness had caused Helen to go deaf, blind, and mute.

The family consulted with Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922), the inventor of the telephone and a pioneer in communicating with people who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Bell arranged for Anne Sullivan (…