I'll never look at my hands the same!

Dear ILites,

Grandma, some ninety plus years, sat feebly on the patio bench. She
didn't move, just sat with her head down staring at her hands. When I sat
down beside her she didn't acknowledge my presence and the longer sat I
wondered if she was OK.

Finally, not really wanting to disturb her but wanting to check on
her at the same time, I asked her if she was OK. She raised her head and
looked at me and smiled. "Yes, I'm fine, thank you for asking," she said
in a clear voice strong.

"I didn't mean to disturb you, grandma, but you were just sitting
here staring at your hands and I wanted to make sure you were OK," I
explained to her.

"Have you ever looked at your hands," she asked. "I mean really
looked at your hands?"

I slowly opened my hands and stared down at them. I turned them
over, palms up and then palms down. No, I guess I had never really looked
at my hands as I tried to figure out the point she was making.

Grandma smiled and related this story:
"Stop and think for a moment about the hands you have, how they have
served you well throughout your years. These hands, though wrinkled,
shriveled and weak have been the tools I have used all my life to Reach
out and grab and embrace life.

"They braced and caught my fall when as a toddler I crashed upon the
floor. They put food in my mouth and clothes on my back. As a child my
mother taught me to fold them in prayer. They tied my shoes and pulled on
my boots. They held my husband and wiped my tears when he went off To war.

"They have been dirty, scraped and raw, swollen and bent. They were
uneasy and clumsy when I tried to hold my newborn son. Decorated with My
wedding band they showed the world that I was married and loved someone
special. They wrote my letters to him and trembled and shook when I buried
my parents and spouse.

"They have held my children and grandchildren, consoled neighbors,
and shook in fists of anger when I didn't understand.

"They have covered my face, combed my hair, and washed and cleansed
the rest of my body. They have been sticky and wet, bent and broken, dried
and raw. And to this day when not much of anything else of me works real well these hands hold me up, lay me down, and again continue to fold in prayer.

"These hands are the mark of where I've been and the ruggedness of life.
But more importantly it will be these hands that God will reach out and
take when he leads me home."
I will never look at my hands the same again. But I remember God
reached out and took my grandma's hands and led her home.
When my hands are hurt or sore or when I stroke the face of my children
and husband I think of grandma. I know she has been stroked and caressed
and held by the hands of God.

I hope all of you enjoyed this!
Now i can justify to hubby, why i use all those expensive creams , or the manicures, or the diamond rings that i crave for to adorn these beautiful hands! he he What do u say ladies!

Dear Sudha,

We in IL, have to 'hand' it to you! You make lovely posts. I enjoyed this one. It is so sweet and strong.

My great grand mother often used to tell us that her own hands are rough,cracked and stained with all the years of hard work she did drawing water from the well, grinding on a stone etc. She wanted us grand daughters to have soft hands that would hold pens.Looks like 'hands' mean a lot to a older generation of women.

Post more,love.

affly
Vidya

dear sudha,
a classic piece and may be i also wont look at my hand the same way how i have done...all these years have looked at the lines and felt when a change would be there but today after reading this...i will look at it with a different angle altogether..nice posting keep it up ..regards sunkan

Dear Sudha,
If Vidya says that we have to hand it over to you, I will say you have won "hands down" with this beautiful post. We normally take our hands (and for that matter everything) for granted. As I travelled back in the memory lane thinking what the hands have done, well, I really wanted to show a "thumbs up" sign to my hands. But even the thumb is right in the hand and how to show thumbs up sign to itself?
Whatever it is all of us now clap our hands on reading this wonderful post.

Well, but your extending the hands-on logic for manicures, diamond rings etc is a little far-fetched. At the right age hands have to look worn out then only they will look their part.
Nice post, Sudha
Kodha Lakshmi

It is not without reason that in the early morning as soon as we wake up, " kara darsanam" is supposed to be done !
We chant
Karagrae vasathae lakshmih karamadhyae saraswathi
Karamule sthithaa gouri prabhaathae kara darshanam
"kara" refers to the palm of the hand & it stands for the 5 "karmendriyas" or the organs of action. While looking at the palm, one invokes the Lord in the form of various deities, thus sanctifying all the actions that will be done during the day. By acknowledging the Lord as the giver of the capacity to perform actions & as the giver of the fruits of those actions, one sanctifies the action.

Sorry Sudha, I hope you won't think, that forever, I talk only of these. But if we are supposed to look at our hands first thing in the morning, we can imagine how much of importance & auspiciousness is attributed to our hands !!
Love,
Chithra.

Dear Sudha,

A beautiful post from you. I think time & again we need to read such posts. We do take hands & a lot of things in life for granted & such posts will help us stop awhile, pause from our routines, to understand the importance / significance, etc.
As far manicures & diamong rings - sure sweetheart, nobody would dare say no.

Love,

Hi,
That post was simple and nice. Chithra's reply elevated the hands. Yes, we have to be reminded that each part of our body is a treasure given to us by God and we have to tend them well. So go head and manicure!
Regards,
Meenu