A Handshake
I met with “Joe” yesterday. He was sitting near the entry to the soup kitchen, and I reached out to shake his right hand. I hadn’t noticed…until he extended his prostatic hand, a griping device toward me. So, I asked: “How do we do this?” He said he usually extends his left hand.” We talked for a while, and he explained to me how he lost his hand in a work related accident back in the 70’s. He got a settlement and then squandered the money and became homeless. But, there was a radiance in his eyes, and he appeared surprisingly content. I said, “God bless you, brother.” He replied: “I am very blessed, and I thank you for providing this place to come to. I don’t come unless I need to, and today I walked all the way from Hamtramck (about 4 hours). This place is a blessing for so many of us. Thank you.” He went on to explain that he has another prosthesis that is shaped like a hand, but he only uses it when he dresses up. This device is better to defend himself with. After some more conversation, we exchanged smiles, and I continued on—feeling blessed to have my left hand that had a severe spider bite that made my hand swell and itch for several days. - Br. Bob