| | HandsI like hands. I really do. They are a marvel of design engineering, flexible and strong at the same time, capable of incredible versatility. Nothing we have ever invented can even come close to God's work. We can build things stronger, but not as dextrous, or faster, but not as versatile. Plus, hands are so individual. Hands are as individual as the people who own them. There are long slender hands, short pudgy hands, tiny petite hands, massive gorilla hands, callused hands and soft hands, scarred hands and flawless hands, hands perpetually dirty under the nails, and hands immaculately clean, rough hands, manicured hands, skilled hands, clumsy hands, you can tell a lot about people by their hands. My favorite are infant hands, the same incredible design only about a hundredth of the size. Even infants, you can tell things about them by their hands. Some have bigger hands, and they are probably going to grow big. Some reach out and look for things to grab hold of, some flail around with tiny fists, some just curl their hands up under their chins. Each has his or her own personality even at that age. Hands are almost infinitely trainable. Some people have nimble fingers that can spider walk up and down the neck of a guitar. Others have hands that can manipulate wrenches, nuts and bolts. Some people type at a hundred words a minute, some people can grip and lift huge weights. Some people sew, some paint, some sculpt or build or lay bricks. Some people can turn their hands into deadly weapons. Cops, soldiers, martial artists, all use their hands to inflict damage on people. My own hands lean this way. The base knuckles on both my hands are scarred and leathery from bare-knuckle boxing on the heavy bag, and my hands and fingers know their way around a joint lock or a chokehold so that I don't have to think about it anymore. Even when I shake hands with someone, my hands tell me all sorts of things about them, where their weight is, how strong their wrist is, how aggressive their sense of positioning is. If I set a hand on someone's shoulder it automatically rests right over the nerves for a control grip. Hands develop habits, just like people. Other people, like doctors and nurses, have healing hands. Some seem to have a gift in their touch, just touching people they comfort them and make them feel better. Their hands develop habits as well. I knew a guy whose wife was a nurse. He told me that whenever they held hands she would automatically check his radial pulse, which I thought was kind of weird. The best thing about hands is that they are versatile. Even those guys with the gorilla hands can still exercise some gentleness, while no matter how tiny a girl's hands might be, they can still be trained to support and grip much more than her bodyweight. Once again, the design is incredible. I have no idea why I thought of this. I just like hands. |
