I am the Left Hand

It hadn’t occurred to me before,

while at the gym snatching up 

the dumbbells one at a time to 

return them to the rack, reaching

down and readjusting so that 

my right hand was the one to 

grab hold with a confident grip,

not even thinking about it.

I am the left hand

The less confident appendage

that asserts itself in surprising 

ways (in sports, for example).

It stays out of the way in a near

constant state of unobtrusiveness

until the time is right and it 

swoops in to save the day 

like a crooked-bill bird of prey. 

I am the left hand

Not a leader, but not exactly a 

follower either, someone who likes

to work behind the scenes because

too much attention saps my will

and clouds my brain with foreboding. 

A wise book teaches there is

one body with many parts and 

the world needs us all, every one

and I am the left hand.

***