13 ways of looking at a hand
I
Out of the corner of your eye
you see the movement
of many hands.
II
A hand alone
is complete.
Two hands intertwined
are complete.
III
Of all the parts of your body,
your hands
pledge to help you the most.
IV
A ballet dance.
Graceful hands.
V
The fire is crackling
and he stretches out
his feet and hands
to warm them from the cold.
VI
You look at them close up --
hands are so big.
Look up.
See the stars and moon.
how big are those specks of pink
now?
VII
Her hands with tapered pale nails,
settled on her lap
as though they were not there.
VIII
The child clutches his blankets to his chin,
terrified
that the shadows dancing on the wall
will reach out with spindly hands
and capture him.
IX
Behind the screen, the movement of a hand
twirls purposefully.
X
Long arm,
gently bent at the elbow,
thinning into wrist
with a strong hand at the end.
XI
Do you not see
the war veterans
without arms?
Without arms they have no hands.
XII
The man takes her hand
and lightly brushes his lips
across her fingers.
XIII
In the loneliness of an empty room,
the only absence
is of dancing hands.
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