Right Left Confusion

Abby Molino, Frankton, Indiana

Thomas Dewar wrote that “Minds are like parachutes, they only function when open.” I would add that parachutes only open right if they’re packed right. My brain’s not quite packed right but I didn’t know it. I lived with right-left confusion (RLC) for decades and compensated safely while working as a Registered Nurse since 1976. It wasn’t until RLC showed up during the recent Intensive, and flummoxed me during Pulling Taffy, Variation One, The Anchor, that I researched RLC online.

Up and down aren’t problems. Nor are forward and back. It’s left and right. Those who experience such trouble are usually fine when we perceive from our own perspective. But when we face an instructor, for example, who is facing us, the plot thickens. Our left arm is now on the side of their right arm. There are no laws of nature to explain that conundrum to our brains.

Do not feel embarrassed if this describes your experience. You are far from alone. How does one manage RLC when it happens? Researchers note that RLC is more likely to happen with stress or time pressure. Therefore: 1.) Slow things down. 2.) Orient oneself spatially. I also said to myself, “This is my right, and it matches my [teacher’s] right side.” 3.) Other people like to make an L-shape with thumb and index finger of the left and right hands. The thumb-finger configuration that actually looks like the letter L is the left hand.

I also searched online for literature involving body movement group classes. I found one helpful article from a Zumba instructor who wrote about Facing the Mirror vs. Facing the Students. She addressed her own experience as an instructor and her own experience as a student.

She cites the importance of 1) Maintaining communication with students who experience confusion and challenges with forward/backward and turning movements; 2) Facing the mirror (back to students) if you notice a struggling student, or when introducing a difficult movement and then transitioning slowly to face the class; 3) Cueing as a vital component of teaching. Giving verbal and/or non-verbal directions for which way to go helps students follow as they learn; 4) Working face-to-face the majority of the time, because it helps the instructor identify struggling participants. They can then be helped by demonstrating modifications; 5) Hirschfeld does not advocate never facing the mirror.

Elliptic Moon

(“push/pull”)

come

on time

elliptic

moon, but get here

soon i feel

the full

pull

— Beverly Miles

Formerly Known as Four Cardinals

high

heaven

ocean’s depth

sun rises east

sun sets west

which route’s

best

— Beverly Miles

Formerly Known as Seasons

spring

into

synergy

summer winter

energy

autumn

jing

— Beverly Miles

Formerly Known as The Elements

(“the daughters”)

space

between

fire and ice

rarified air

above and

beyond

ground

— Beverly Miles