On hands

We use our hands to build, to create, to cook and bake, to repair, to comfort, and to love. We can also use them to destroy or to do harm. Through our hands we meet the world for better, and at times for worse. Our hands could at once be seen as the most practical and the most revealing part of our body.

I remember moments in my life where I have wanted to cover my hands, to symbolically keep them precious and private. I also remember times where I have wanted to adorn them and show them to the world. But one thread is enduring - though my response to it has changed over time:

I remember noticing early on that I was fairly physically strong compared to the other girls, and I was eager to help out with lifting things or opening a jar’s stuck lid. In adulthood, I found my hands wouldn’t fit in the gloves provided in the hair dye packets marketed to women. I realised my hands were probably slightly bigger than ‘average’. They also aren’t dainty - apart from the span of my hands, the veins are visible doing their generous job of returning deoxygenated blood to my heart for re-oxygenation.

It can take a re-frame to view our difference as power rather than liability. While my hands would never win a beauty contest, I have come to feel immense pride and admiration for their size and strength. They have been fundamental to the creation of meaningful art, beautifully bound books, well-done (and not-so-well-done) DIY, and the creation of delicious food. They have held and comforted lovers, and friends, and children, and animals. They are a means through which I reach out to the world.

And my hands are my sensitised and educated tools for holistic massage and Thai yoga massage. It felt important and special to have my hands drawn by artist Katherine Lubar for my logo.

What stories and memories do your hands hold?