Palmister
Hand-reading career guides.
"Ah yes, I can see it now. Your hands are quite steady which is great for potters and scribes. They are also quite sensitive, like you. I think that you could, if your parents think it is a good idea, pursue a physician's life and help those suffering from sickness and injury."
If Hands Could Talk
Palmisters were people who specialized in understanding the features of hands. They were primarily employed to determine the most appropriate career path for children and young adults though many were also capable of rudimentary medical care. Some traveled around offering their services along the rivers of Zinato, while others were members of the community in which they lived. They carried with them a number of different tools to determine the strengths of the hands. Nimbleness, steadiness, sensitivity, and grip strength were all rated. The different ratings for each category would determine which profession - or small group of professions - the person in question would be best suited to. Grip strength would favour professions like farming and log driving while nimbleness indicated that art or pottery would be a worthy endeavor.The End of the Palmisters
When the Time of Rebuilding gave way to the Time of Exploration - and even before that when Darapur was established - palmisters were not sought after as much as they had been before. With great heroes like Ryza inspiring young girls to pursue their dreams and Darosi creating great interest in exploration, people began to choose their own paths. The end was not absolute as if banned by decree but was swift nonetheless. In only a few short years the demand for career guidance had almost disappeared. Not because the last generation didn't want to help their children by providing them with a path but because the children began refusing the advice of the palmisters. This self-determination was contagious - especially in Zinato - and many older people began to reevaluate their lives for themselves.Stub Article
This article is just a stub for now and will be expanded upon later.Old Article
This article was written in the past and does not meet my current standards for any number of article quality, layout, or content.In-Progress Article
This article is being worked on, perhaps not at this very moment, but it is being worked on.Filling the Rivers
As the palmisters met their demise at the dawn of the new age, the Drifters saw a large influx of people searching for a new way to live, looking for new experiences, and wanting to reinvent themselves. Palmisters had never found business in the Drifters whose free-spirits came long before their time.Poking and Prodding
Not all palmisters were very gentle. Many were known for poking hand with sharp objects, testing sensitivity with flame, or squeezing a held hand very tightly. This was not considered strange during their heyday, it was simply a part of their process, but now only a few decades later these practices are thought of as cruel and unusual.Unlike other professions which were rendered obsolete by technology, disaster, or political will, palmisters lost their jobs to the minds of people. They lost to the zeitgeist of this new age.
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