Ode to the Little Finger

By: Mayda E. Gómez

September 2, 2026

Have you ever thought about writing to your pinky fingers? If you think about it, they're often the ones that remind us we're alive.

I'm rushing through the world and, whoosh!, I kick the edge of a table. It's those moments that not only remind me I'm alive; they also remind me of the sun, the moon, the stars, and even the Milky Way.

And I wonder: if it's dairy, is it because it produces milk? And if I'm lactose intolerant, shouldn't I look to the sky?

In short, an ode to my little fingers, because with just a caress you make me laugh. With a good shoe you can sit comfortably, but with a little song we travel the world, we remember words worthy of folklore, and we can even add new slang to our dialect.

Thank you, little finger. Your characteristics have placed you next to the ring finger, the one they say goes straight to the heart. That's how your presence is felt too: a single stumble or carelessness is enough to make one vibrate to the very depths of their being.

Little finger, small in size, but you know how to make yourself big as you go through all the corners.

Part of my emotional well-being involves waking up and quickly trying to put a smile on my face. The first message that comes to mind is, "I'm alive," and I immediately think, "Thank you, God.".

Then I begin to meditate on each part of my body. I wiggle each of my toes, take a deep breath, give thanks, and think: they look so quiet… and all it takes is bumping into the corner of the bed for me to feel you all week long, as if I didn't even know you were there!

I think you like being talked to.

And if I talk to you like that, I feel like we're laughing together: my right little toe and I.

Yes, even though I have two pinky fingers that look the same, they're different. They belong to different feet: one is on the right and the other on the left. Look, they're even pointing in opposite directions! And the neighboring finger seems determined to keep them from meeting.

What a responsibility we have! We must present them and treat them individually.

I continue to meditate and conclude that the little finger has its own character, its own joy, its own attitude, and its own strength.

You look so weak, yet you have enough strength to cause a whole dance when someone hits you.

So small, and yet, even if you hide and try to go unnoticed, you know how to make yourself felt in your entirety.

Thank you for being part of my balance as I walk, for being my joy when I wake up, my alert, my alarm in the face of danger and my voice when I walk in silence… and stumble.

Today I honor and acknowledge them.

To my small, silent, and powerful pinkies.