Give the hand its five minutes
Warm a plain oil between the palms and work the other hand slowly: thumb circles in the palm, long strokes along each finger, gentle pull at the tips. This is hand massage reduced to its honest core, and it is enough.
Sit somewhere warm afterwards with the hands still. The oil needs a minute to settle, and so does the nervous system that just received the message.
Care for the giving hands
Wash and dry hands thoroughly before and after any oil work, and keep the cuticles oiled in winter, when they crack first. Hands that give comfort deserve the routine they provide.
A hand balm by the bed, used nightly, is the whole prescription. Consistency outperforms elaboration in textile care and in this, which the attentive reader will have noticed is the journal’s only real argument.
Published by the Miraseta journal.