Medicus Multis Manibus
Marissa Oerlemans (2022)
Hands can be many things: occupied, dexterous, expressive, and helpful. However, if these were the options given in a multiple-choice question, Helené Basson’s hands would fall in all the above categories. This story is not about a medical marvel. It is about a surgeon with two hands. And how these two hands built a fascinating life. The sentence “a surgeon, a sharpshooter, and a conductor” sounds like it should end with “walks into a bar”. Such an unlikely trio couldn’t possibly have anything in common. But in this story, they do, a pair of hands. The hands of Helené Basson. A surgeon, sharpshooter, and choir conductor.
