👊🏼 Clenched Fists, Open Hands 👐🏼

Image Credit: Milada Vigerova

As people who believe that all things are being made new, we can recognize – even in the brokenness of failure and in the hurt of people with whom we will never be able to reconcile – that we are not trapped in the worst things we have done. We can be better and are being made whole moment by moment. Reconciliation is in that hope of transformation. -Jeannie Alexander, Longing for Reconciliation, Disciplines 2022

I was reading the above devotion last week, and through the lesson, this stood out “Clenched fists, open hands.” Maya Angelou once said, “I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back.”

We would probably say that based on the number of images we see, many people are walking around with clenched fists. But I think there are more people than we know who are sporting open hands. A clenched fist signifies solidarity, but depending on the angle it’s coming from, it can mean anger, harboring a short fuse, and being ready to fight. Open hands, on the other hand (no pun intended), display an invitation that welcomes, reveals kindness, and offers compassion and help when needed.

Depending on the situation, a clenched fist may be necessary to defend, but open hands can be the peacemaker in a place where chaos and confusion rear their ugly head.

“There is more power in the open hand than in the clenched fist.” — Herbert Newton Casson