Right or left handed?
As we grow from infancy to childhood, it becomes clear that as individuals, we are are left-handed or right.
We learn to eat left or right-handed, and write left-handed or right.
My late mother was a very powerful character, who would consider left handed people freaks, so I learned to eat right handed and write right handed. I can do left or right equally well [though left is not fluent after fifty years]... I read as well unpside down, and can write clearly, if not fluently, "upside-down" as well.
I am convinced that by nature [without influence] I am fairly ambi-dextrous but tending to left handed-ness, though if asked I would call myself "right-handed."
But today something arose where I am totally left handed. The bike. I get on from the right - i.e. push the bike left handed - and have the brakes reversed so that the left hand opperates the front [most significant] brake. This indicates to me that without influence from mother and society, I would have favoured left handed-ness in possibly everything else. Fortunately I can do most things both handed, though practice with eating and writing makes me effectively right -handed in these at least. It has surprised people that I am equally accurate with a wood saw, left or right-handed. I change after fifty so as to keep going without loosing power in none critical situations.
Though I work the computer mouse with the righ hand I simply cannot work the clicks the normal way. I have it reversed, ... on a track-ball, which I find is so easy when woirking with precision such as in designing ... That induicates a certain left-handed-ness or ambidextrous tendency to me. I am sure we have experts here who might wish to comment.
This ought to be a kind thread with no moral implications, so I ask that we don't start arguing about words and definitions, or whether left handed in sinister [Latin] and right handed dexter, as in dextrous!
Have other Forum members and friends found themselves not quite complying with the normal "right-handed-ness" of society ... ?
ATB from George
Posted on: 11 June 2011 by Florestan
On stringed instruments, it may not be as odd as you think that right handed players naturally tend toward fingering with the left and bow with the right. While fine motor skills are required in either case, holding a bow and playing is the more physical aspect by a wide margin so it only seems natural for the majority to gravitate this way. In the same way, as a right hander, I couldn't naturally hold a pencil with my left and do anything useful. I have not spent time in my life trying to perfect this but the couple times one tries this it is clear that there seems no point in the effort. I do not ever recall having to fight or struggle holding a pencil in my right hand though I could be wrong about this? I would think holding a pencil and bowing share many attributes.
In stringed instruments, I am most familiar with a cello and, as an adult learner, I know my greatest struggle is in the lack of strength and control of my right arm. The left fingers tend to benefit from gravity but don't misunderstand this as there is a difficulty here but it is just different. With the bowing, I find it harder physically and with a violin, I imagine it is the same as your right arm is up in the air too and you need a fair bit of control in weighting while holding this stick at one end and learning how to control and balance it. The left hand does not require the dominant muscles to this degree, in my opinion. It is much more directed to fine motor skills than strength.
I am right handed and a pianist. In my early years as a child it was painfully obvious how disadvantaged and limiting the left hand was in the mix. With time and tens of thousands of hours of work though the disparity has been removed to the point that all 10 fingers are relatively or somewhat equal now. They may never be totally equal in all respects just due to the fact that the 4th and 5th fingers can never be as strong as a thumb or the 1st and 2nd finger physically but in dexterity and control you can achieve equality among fingers and hands over time from a concerted effort.
Due to an injury to my right arm/ wrist a few years ago I was challenged with many issues. Due to this ordeal though my left hand has basically caught up to right and is every bit as strong and in some sense is even stronger than my right now. Yet, I still find I do not have to focus or work as hard to do many things with my right hand and I do have to always focus and sweat more on the left hand in working things out.
This injury, also forced me to switch from using a mouse in the right hand to now being a 100% left handed mouse user. If I do switch back, I occasionally find it interesting to navigate the left click / right click aspect but usually it comes back quickly.
George, you mention your ability to read and write upside down. I am wondering if you believe this to be related to or an advantage of your left-handedness or if this is just incidental?
Best Regards,
Doug
