My ugly hands.

After the beautiful grass bite-up me hands, fat blisters pop up and they join each other to make continents. On thumbs, pointing fingers and middle fingers. Look so ugly I use them for fun…might as well, otherwise I woulda bawl. While I talk to people I suddenly hold up me hands and say, ‘Look what happen,’ and watch people step back in horror.

Them blisters take weeks to go away. Couldn’t sew, couldn’t embroider, garden or sweep house with me li’l coconut broom.

Make me realise, we really take hands for granted, eh?

Well, I do. Take these hands for granted…

…me sly hands…sly yes, when me and Cousin Nan was 4 and 5 years ole in the countryside, we used to slip into the shop next door and snitch ching gum…chewing gum…from the glass bottle while the shopkeeper been at the back o’ the shop, no wonder we end up with cavities and had to go to the dentist and one o’ we holler so bad and kick the needle out from the dentist hand, I did want to scratch he face with the nails of me hands…

…me chile hands that make cards for mother, pasting pictures with cooked rice or gluey gamma cherry…

…hands that had chew-up fingers nails one year in high-school because me best friend then used to chew she nails then all them other girls start to grow theirs so I grow mine too. Then I dig them long nails into me palms to cause pain so I don’t cry at sad movies or finnerals…

…hands that itch to make rude gestures to mean drivers but they stay on the steering wheel, blasted, stupid hands…

…hands that sprinkle anti-bacterial powder on my mother after she surgery...and paint with li’l ‘Merican nephews and wipe away they eye-water when they cry…hands that craft, that pray (and plead) and give and plant and reap and know tons of secrets that the right one does scribble in me red book…

“They look scrawly, man, they proper look terrible,” my mother say one morning as she examine them blisters. Hmmph, only a mother can say something like that and get away with it.

But them ugly, hurting hands wasn’t why I ain’t blog.

I ain’t blog because I been doing extreme surgery to me manuscript, cutting out chunks of self-indulgence, removing them silly bits and re-stitching phrases and sentences and adding more life to the writing. If I did only stop to blog I woulda lose momentum an’ passion.

And all the while, it was you, dear bloggers and other folks who comment, it was you who been keeping me going with you kind words and compliments. If you only know how much support you give!

So with these hands I want to say a big thank you (applause, applause for you all).

And thank you too, Mr. Scarty from Fotland for this:

Now I want to share the award with 5 other bloggers...but before I do...rules is rules...so...for them who get nominated...

(a.) Pick five (5) blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also for contributing to the blogging community, no matter what language.

(b.) Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.

(c.) Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award itself.

(d.) Award-winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link of Arte y Pico blog, so everyone will know the origin of this award.

Okay, here I go:

1. I ain’t know if, technically speaking, what he got is a ‘blog’…but anyway, Mike is the blogger of all bloggers. He does have Projects that sometimes involve other bloggers; he give lectures on what blogging is all about and post them lectures on he site; if he see a new, exciting blog, he tell everybody; and don’t forget Post of the week that he start and still run. Oh gosh, then there is Shaggy Blog Stories, he brain-chile…a book with stories by other bloggers.

2. Pat is the perfect blend of nostalgia and now. She is beautiful, stylish, graceful and boy, she can weave a good story. Plus, she does show photos of places that make me KNOW that is possible to create beauty…that we ain’t got to sit and wait for others to do it.

3. Jdid is a mix of politics and personal, Caribbean and Canada, writing in English and Creole, depending on mood and story. And depending on the mood or story, he can make you eye-water run with laughter or sadness. This fella, for me, capture a big part of we Caribbean spirit. If you get the time, find and read he public transport stories.

4. Lee, who I like to call Caribbean, is a Merican gyal livin’ in Belize. She is talented, a’ artist and photographer and a great story-teller too. She capture life there, and sometimes the language, to a ‘t’. Lee is hilarious but she is a practical woman too, writing about dreams and the stereotypical ideas people have of giving it all up and moving to the Caribbean, and what you reeeeally need to be a success.

5. Lucy, a witty Brit in Portugal. And ohhhh, she illustrations! I still remember that one she do of a bland, blank middle-class mama who go to pick up she chile at school. Lucy is satirical, ironic…just plain wicked.

I wish I can include more people because for all kinda reasons, I think you all is great…but that gon take me ‘til December…and right now, me hands got to go and vacuum this house…