My left hand man.

I have/had a number of things in common with my dad. I'm going to use current tense for the rest of this just for simplicity, even though he has been dead for more than 20 years.  Well, except for this next line....He was definitely an introvert, was strong and determined, and could usually make or fix what he needed with the hoard of junk he kept around. The two things of which I'm most proud are these. We are both left handed, and I happened to be his 37th birthday present from his wife! I can't imagine a greater gift, can you?  After I was an adult, we usually made a little ritual of shaking hands and saying Happy Birthday to each other. It was one thing that I have always been able to claim that none of my siblings could.  Dad never wanted a big deal made of his birthday, much like myself now and ours was surrounded by many others as well. Mary is just a couple days before us and Stella just a few after, followed by Bill a couple weeks later, so it was just another Birthday, sometimes even combined with the others. I just realized as I wrote that, of the 14, including mom and dad, more than a third of us are all born within a month of each other!
Again, it took me writing this to realize that our left handedness is also something I can claim in common that none of my siblings can.  I can never remember any physical abuse as a result of it, but I can definitely remember being teased about it.  Dad on the other hand recounted how, for a long time, he regularly had his knuckles rapped with a ruler when he wrote with his left hand.  Pretty barbaric eh?
I learned a long time ago, how fortunate I am to be a southpaw.  I can do many things equally well on either side, especially handling tools.  In general, I believe my body has developed more flexibility than most in this regard, due to the fact that I am a lefty in a right handed world.  I also feel I have an advantage in the way my mind works. I have a good buddy who also happens to be left handed and he taught me this great line. "We are the only people in our right minds!". This is a reference to the fact that left handers use the right hemisphere of their brains much more than righties.
I remember one time at the farm when I must have been either 16 or 17. I know that only because I was the oldest left at home and I moved out prior to my 18th birthday.  Farming still included lots of manual labour back then and being " number one" so to speak, I was solid as a rock!  Back then, it would have been shit, not snow I was shoveling, and that wasn't  weather dependent.  Well the septic tank needed pumping out so dad arranged the service. My job was to dig up a 6 or 8 square foot hole, about 1.5 feet deep to expose the lid of the tank. I had that all done and the lid removed by the time the contractor showed up. Dad and I were just standing by the opening when he got out of the truck and acknowledged us. I am sure they knew each other, so their greeting was fairly simple.  After shaking hands, dad motioned to me and introduced me by saying "this is my left hand man" I remember giving him a little poke in the ribs to pay him back for the insult.
It wasn't until years later when I recounted the story to Cory and Peter that they made me realize it was a compliment, not an insult.  A real left handed compliment, from a lefty to a lefty!  I am so lucky!

"You have two hemispheres in your brain - a left and a right side. The left side controls the right side of your body and right controls the left half. It's a fact. Therefore, left-handers are the only people in their right minds."
Bill Lee

Proud to be your left hand man.
Love Holij, or should I change it to Hollij?