International Left-Handers day: On the other hand

Being left-handed is sometimes fun because of how odd people find it. People often say, “Oh you are left-handed, you must be creative! Do you love art? How can you manage to write with this hand? Your parents must be left-handed.” Especially the schools are a battlefield to fight such notions.

On the other hand, left-handed people tend to adopt an 'adjusting behaviour' due to the right-hand dominant world, which produces so many products according to right-hand users.

An interesting fact is if you make the most use of your creativity and imagination, then you can be one out of 12 per cent of the world's population, and the same number of the population is left-handed. Some research says your dominant hand is already decided when you are in the womb.

Isn't it amusing when you try experimenting with different activities like writing, using scissors, claw fighting, playing any instrument or any sports with your right hand? It is believed that left-handed people are more likely to have artistic views, creative perspectives can be good in sports, and better performers when it comes to calculation.

Ever experienced someone poking you out for not using your left hand? People still face stereotypes at their homes for being lefty because, back in history, using the left hand was perceived to be a sin. It was considered that Satan used to baptise his followers with his left hand; devils are greeted by witches through their left hand.

In India, using your left hand is a rude gesture due to many underlying myths but the reality is something else. Using your left hand for hard work can be dangerous because the human heart is also on the left side. Doing hard work like hammering, picking up a heavyweight with your left hand can result in sudden heart stroke or cardiovascular disease.

Being a lefty is such a difficulty! Remember during school days when you demanded extra space to write properly on your notebooks but ended up with elbow fights. Using right-hand scissors at home is such torture and that time when we have to use the right-hand exam desk and our left elbow can not take rest on it, it is just frustrating. In the predominant world of right-handers, the most embarrassing moment is when lefties shake hands and habitually greet with their dominant hand first.

Don't worry, you are not alone! There are so many well-known people like Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar, Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan, who might have come across the same incidents.

Beforehand, some of the eminent personalities like Mark Twain, who was an American writer, faced similar situations where they were forced to use their left hand due to rheumatism.

August 13 is observed as an International Left-Handers day celebrated annually to appreciate their distinctiveness and to raise awareness about their existence. This day was first discovered by Dean R Campbell, in 1976.

Now, the rocky road for left-handers in this world is getting smoother. The needs of lefties are also kept in mind by a predominant world of right-handers. The popularity of special left-handers products like peelers, scissors, rulers (scale) is rising slowly.

This story is a replug.