Sister Mary Margaret had my back. Not just mine. Everybody’s in our first grade class. She wanted to make sure we got off on the right foot. Which meant using the right—er, correct— hand to write with. 
She no doubt knew that the translation of the word “left” in Latin is sinister. Sister Double M didn’t want to take a chance that any one of her 22 charges would turn out to be sinister-handed. I was that 1/22. Because it felt “more right” to write with my left hand.
This memory surfaced a few days ago as I noticed the growing volume of email in my inbox alerting me to the the shrinking number of days until the presidential election. Judging from the tone of those emails, the question—What or Who is “more right” politically—seems to be taking on increasing fervor. 
And rightfully so, in this constitutional republic in which we live.
Some pundits say our nation is nearly evenly split between the right and the left. Which, interestingly enough, has no connection whatsoever to which hand a person prefers to use in day-to-day activities. Psychology Today reports “about 90% of Americans are right- handed and only about 10% are left-handed.
On the other hand, seven out of 11 of the most recent US. Presidents on both sides of the aisle have been left-handed. Yet leftie has retained negative nuances. Why?
I did some research. In Old English (the language that’s had the most influence on our Current English), the word lyft meant weak; the word riht meant morally correct. Aha!
But there’s more. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, “the left” refers to the portion of the political spectrum generally associated with egalitarianism. The term came into being back in the 1790’s, when the social representatives in the French Revolutionary Party sat on the presiding officer’s left.
Obviously, I didn’t learn everything I needed–or would want– to know in first grade. Other important lessons have come on the playground of life.
Hurled sticks and stones can indeed break our bones. As for words and labels—What is too often overlooked is that they can surely hurt us. If we make enemies of our own selves. If we speak without thinking about what’s and who’s behind the words we choose.
To share your opinion about what’s “more right,” please use the comment box below.
As always, Patricia, I enjoy reading everything you’ve ever written. Our youngest daughter is left-handed, and her self-discipline is extreme, and continues to amaze me. Her husband and her three sons are the same — not left-handed, but certainly self-disciplined.
Thanks for your comments, Earl. I am fascinated by the way genetics works in handed-ness. In my family of origin, three out of five siblings are let-handed. All five of my children are right-handed. Go figure!