What help is at hand for my sprained thumb?

THUS far, I have saved you any mention of my sprained thumb; a hope perhaps that if ignored it might go away.

- Peter Mortimer

It has not gone away. I can no longer ignore it in this column.How did you sprain it, I hear you ask. And I have no suitable reply. I went to bed one night with two perfectly adequate thumbs and awoke the next morning to find the left one sprained. Add to this the fact that I am left-handed.

A sprained thumb is of course not a fatal condition and unlike say a broken leg or a bandaged head, it is unlikely to attract much sympathy. Nor are get-well cards in evidence, nor bunches of grapes, nor well-meaning visitors. I have thus far mentioned it to scarcely a soul. Why am I now, at this moment, choosing to break this silence to my small but perfectly formed group of readers?