<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><div dir="auto" style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><p class="MsoNormal">Tremors<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p class=""> </o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Try holding a large ceramic teapot <o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">brimming with boiled water in one hand.<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Then enlist the other to settle the quake.<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Try composing an email or a poem on the<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">keyboard with precision, deleting as many<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">repetitive letters, tremor induced,<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">as those which remain. Try speaking clearly,<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">pronouncing words at a snail’s pace when<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">your mouth feels like it’s full of marbles or<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">your jaw is heavy like a sand bag.<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Try trimming a jagged fingernail with a<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">quivering jaw or plucking chin hairs with<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">trembling tweezers. Try threading a needle,<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">moistening the tip of thread over and over<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">until by some happy accident it slips<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">through the hole. Try cutting kinesiotape<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">for overstretched ligaments or removing<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">an alcohol wipe or bandaid from it’s tight<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">little package. Try snapping a photo, catching<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">the perfect moment on a phone lacking shutter <o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">control. Try lifting a ceramic mug to your lips to<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">sip tea without it clinking against teeth. Or<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">carrying a full plate at a potluck, approaching<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">your seat slowly, deliberately willing your hands<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">to be steady, to not splatter food on the floor. <o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Or grasping a soup spoon, bringing it from <o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">bowl to mouth without spilling.<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Stainless straws work wonders.<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Such simple things can wrangle patience,<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">can lasso perseverance and build character,<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">I like to believe. All doable with resilient<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">spirit, without watching the clock, with<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">gentleness for oneself. Like The Little <o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Engine That Could, I’m convinced that I can!<o:p class=""></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br class=""></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>- Constance Miles<o:p class=""></o:p></p><div class=""><br class=""></div></div></body></html>