What a weird thing, this elbow. Even the word, upon repetition, sounds awkward: elbow…elbow…elbow.
We all have one, but are they ever thought about? Not pretty, they look dry and scaly – unlike the smoothness of the rest of the skin.
Bumping the elbow creates a striking sensation in the funny bone, both tickly and painful at the same time.
People jostle with their elbows, but the habit can be picked up to return the jostle. Jostling and shoving does not feel good; and neither does a child using an elbow as a help-step to jump off a lap or climb a body like a jungle gym. Ouch!
How about a double-jointed elbow? Isn’t that a strange site to see when it can practically turn itself inside out?
A baby starts life with an elbow begging to be kissed, soft and supple and mom makes sure there are no boo boos. It grows with the child until it becomes a gangly club that knocks things off of counters, tables and walls.
When spouses begin to sleep with each other, used to sleeping alone, elbows bonk heads and awaken sleepers in the middle of the night. This may create a need for bed helmets if someone awakens angry. A need arises to leave bed until enough calm occurs to resume sleep. But where does the elbow lie during sleep? If it is slept upon, needles and pins tingle in it; if sleep is too hard, the elbow becomes stiff, not pliable in the morning.
Aaaahhh, to be an elbow: strong and soft, bendy and straight, scaly and tough.
Dawn Marie Paul Art & Books 