Thankful Thursday, a little late

So my blog has been weird for a few days and wouldn't let me view it... weird, but whatever.

Today I'm thankful for hands. See, I remember being a little girl and sitting and playing with my daddy's hands. I remember thinking that his hands were so big and strong. He had calluses and square nails and my hands looked so small in his.

Even now, when I go visit my grandma (which I ought to do more often), I like to hold her hand, her skin is so thin and I remember when I was little, holding her hand and it always being cold, but cold hands signify a warm heart, after all.

At work, when I have babies, and I get to be in the baby room, I'll just sit and hold the babies' hands while I rock them. Their hands are so small, but strong, and they'll just grab on so tight, like you're the most important  thing in the world.

I love holding hands. I took a language of love quiz the other day, and words of affirmation and physical touch tied with the highest points. That being said, I'm not overly... open with physical things.

 This might seem silly, but I can't really remember how many boys I've held hands with...It's either 4 or 5...

• See, I remember the first, Homecoming date Senior Year. (my dad was in the next room, only happened once). 
• Then there's this one guy, (we called him the make out prince, but no, I did not make out with him, for the record, he just made out with everyone else...) And I just can't, for the life of me, remember if we held hands or not. I know that's ridiculous, but it's true. I thought about asking him, we are facebook friends. But he's married with a few kids, that might be awkward!
• Then there was the jerk face, we'll call him, He who shall not be named...  
• And then the one random guy post mission (that makes me sound like a hand holding hussy, I'm not, I thought there was something going on, he quickly informed me that there wasn't, so I informed him that there would be no more hand holding. I'm nobody's on call girlfriend!) 
• Then there's the boy...  

 (Aren't you glad I shared all this info with you?) But see, only with two of them has it been anything... serious... real? I don't know the right word for that. Anyway, but when it's someone that I like... well. I just love holding hands.

The first time I held hands with the boy, I swear (feel free to make fun of me), but it just made me feel warm all over. I actually went over to my sister's house and informed her that I had just 'interdigitated'! Since then, it seems like every time we're together so our our hands. Then I realized how many different ways you can hold someone's hand. I could list the different types, and I almost did... but you seriously don't want me to do that. Also, my parents just invited me out to dinner.

I LOVE holding hands. I especially love it in the small moments, the holding hands while driving, or walking or sitting in church, or just... I miss that boy.

But I just think how amazing it is that hands can accomplish so much. You can comfort and show love and friendship, or they can serve and lift and help. They can be small or large or simply there.

I'm thankful for the hands that have been there to lift me and comfort me, and help me grow. The ones that have helped me to become who and where I am today, because I sure as heck don't think that I got to this place in my life by myself.

The poet W.H. Auden said "Fondly I ponder you all, for without you I couldn't have managed even my weakest of lines." I've long believed that true of my life. Ok, I'm done blabbering.