Demotivation

Being a Lefty

This is a blog about how wonderful and sometimes not-so-wonderful it is to be a lefty.
To those right-handed people who read this, don't worry, you are special too.
Just not as special.

So why is a person left-handed, you may ask?
Research is still a little unclear why we are so amazing, but many ascribe it to genetic and environmental factors. Although some people may come to the conclusion that it is decided by whatever hand they first pick up a pencil with, research shows that hand orientation begins even before a child is born.

But who cares? The fact is, we are special.

We have learned to adapt in a world that favors right-handedness.

Just imagine being a child in kindergarten, searching through a pile of brightly-colored, plastic grip scissors and finding that the only lefty pair is plain silver and extremely uncomfortable. What do you do? You learn to use the right-handed scissors.

Imagine going through elementary, junior high, and high school where your teachers demand you write long essays and assignments and tests in pencil. Do you know what this means for a lefty!? It means a paper full of smudged graphite. It also means a large smudges of grey running down your hand and even onto your sleeve. What do you do? You wash your hands after every class and roll up your sleeves when you write.

Now imagine being in college, trying to find a left-handed desk. You realize in some of your classrooms, there are none. in other classrooms, the two left-handed desks are in the back, far-left corner of the room. What do you do? You learn to love the fact that you can lean your right elbow on your desk, while your left hand maintains a slightly awkward position on the left. I'm really in love with this flyer--especially the part that says, "Is this desk an instrument of ?" YES, I say to all the wicked desk creators, yes it is.

So being a lefty is kind of a challenge.
BUT.
We are also amazing.

Continue reading to find out how amazing:

"Left-handed persons are thought to process information using a 'visual simultaneous' method in which several threads can be processed simultaneously. Another way to view this is such: Suppose there were one thousand pieces of popcorn and one of them was colored blue. Right-handed people—using the linear sequential processing style—would look at the popcorn one at a time until they encountered the blue one. The left-handed person would spread out the pieces of popcorn and look at all of them to find the one that was blue. A side effect of these differing styles of processing is that right-handers need to complete one task before they can start the next. Left-handers, by contrast, are capable and comfortable switching between tasks. This seems to suggest that left-handed people have an excellent ability to multi-task, and anecdotal evidence that they are more creative may stem from this ability to multi-task." (Wikipedia: Left Handedness)

As a side note, I really, really love the popcorn analogy.

Instead of solving problems and analyzing them a piece at a time, we solve it by looking at the whole.
We are usually more creative.
And there are more people with IQs over 140 than right-handed people.

Think of the left-handed people that have lived. To name a few--Leonardo da Vinci, Marie Curie, Joan of Arc, Winston Churchill, and Aristotle. We are creative and sometimes even brilliant.

We are famous. The finalists of American Idol last season (David Cook and David Archuleta) were both left-handed. Oprah is left-handed.

Lefties have a habit of being powerful politically also--Julius Caesar, Charlemagne, and Napoleon. Our presidents also have a habit of being left-handed also--Obama, Bush, and Clinton.
Even amidst the the prejudice and the discrimination, it is pretty great to be a lefty.
We look for each other. We notice other lefties. And apparently we may be attracted to other lefties also...

So next time you notice a lefty in a class or at the store...admire us.
Because life can be a little harder for us, even when we are so amazing.

What are the Chances?!

Scene 1: In Class Today
(note: my thoughts are in italics)

I was sitting in a new class and the teacher had us get to know the person next to us.
I turn to the person next to me.
Wow, this guy is very attractive.

Him: I noticed you're left-handed. I am too.

Why am I always attracted to left-handed men? Interesting...

Him: You know, I think there is a greater population of left-handed people at BYU. In one of my classes there was a row of seven of us....

And as I got to know him, I'm thinking, Wow this guy sounds amazing! Finally, someone that is attractive and has a great personality.

I was excited. This was the first time in a long time that I actually wanted to go on a date with someone.

He kept talking and then I heard, Bla bla bla...FIANCEE...bla bla bla....

Woah. Wait a minute right there. Did he just say fiancee? Yep. Okay, keep on the smile. Keep nodding. It's happened before, it'll happen again....

Sccene 2: Flash forward one hour to Becky's apartment.
Me: Becky, I fell for someone that was engaged today in one of my classes.
Becky: Yeah, I did that too yesterday. This guy walked in the room and he was SO attractive and he came and sat by me. We got talking and then he mentioned his fiancee and I was disappointed.
Me: Yeah, it's awful.
Becky: When he walked in, I thought, I can't pass this up, so I turned to him and said, "Hey, I noticed you're left-handed and I am too."
Me: That's funny, the guy I was talking to was left-handed also.
Becky (continues on with story): And he said that he thought there was a higher population of left-handed people at BYU and that in one of his classes there was a row of 10 or 12 of them.
Me: Wow...wait a minute...I had that same conversation today. Where was he from?

We compared hometown, hair color, and name and realized...yep, we both fell for the same person.

Who was engaged.

What are the chances of that?!

Okay, for those of you who don't know BYU has 30,000 students. The chances that one person would have a class both with Becky and me are slim. The chances that that one person would sit right next to both Becky and me in those classes are even slimmer. The chances that Becky and I would have this conversation and figure out it was the same person?! Extremely slim.

But do you know what I love about this story? Becky and I both were attracted to the same guy. Which would have been a problem if he wasn't engaged, but I love how it shows that we look for similar things in guys.

I love my cousin Becky. So much. And today I realized one reason why I love her all the more!

Oh Yes You Can

I just can't do it, I said.

I can't start another semester.
I can't go through another semester like the last one.
I can't make it through the classes and the work.
I can't make it through the stress and the anxiety.
I can't make it through any more disappointment.
I can't make it through any more dating and not dating.
I can't make it through the heartache.
I can't make it through the hours and the days and the weeks.
I can't make it through loneliness and challenges.
I can't keep having hope and faith and courage.
And on top of it, I really can't survive the cold and the dark days.

I just can't.

And then I heard God say, Oh yes you can.

2009

Here is to more time with family.

Here is to more time with friends.
Here is to more fun.
Here is to less time spent writing papers in the library.
Here is to more early morning runs.
Here is to seeing the beauty that is all around me.
Here is to living right and living happy.
Here is to challenges, here is to overcoming...and enduring.
Here is to relationships and to love and to becoming.
Here is to LIFE!