Useless Hands

His hands (as huge as shovels)
Perch
Gnarled,
Idle on protruding kneecaps

His hands (that once constructed a home
for his spouse and his children)
Quiver and tremble
Fingertips in a perpetual dance

His hands (that once pulled a calf
from its bellowing, reluctant parent)
Now display deep crevasses
Seeming to surrender into the arthritic bones

His hands (that once cupped a pretty girls face
as he moved in to kiss her)
Now seem unable to even hold
A tea cup to his lips

His hands (that for decades carved the turkey
for Christmas dinner)
Now hover aimlessly
Over the fork, near his plate

His hands (that did so much
earned his living
caressed his wife at night
cradled offspring)
Now in eternal retirement

Useless

Untrustworthy

Unrecognisable amidst breeding liver spots