Sailor's Grip

How to hold your baby

We have so much to learn from gorillas. Maybe that's why I like watching them so much. I have never once seen Jamani pick her child up by the hand. We humans do that all the time, but maybe that's not so smart.  Jamani lifts Bomassa many times a day to put him on her back so she can move with him to wherever she needs to go next. But does she reach for his hand? Not on your life. No, she always grabs the entire forearm.

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This is so much less risky.  Were she to hold only his hand while lifting, his body weight would drag him down at the same time as she's pulling the hand up. This could result in dislocation of the wrist.  Bad idea.   But she always knows to grab a good portion of his arm as she hoists him up over her shoulder so that he can latch onto her back. This is pretty close to what is known as the Sailor's Grip.  People who work on boats learn that when they need to grasp each other for safety, or to pull one another up on deck, they are better off grasping forearms rather than just holding hands. It's a much more stable hold.

Jamani lifts Bomassa