USA. A businessman shook my hand, and I require a moment. In Japan, the bow carries everything — depth, duration, who rises first. The hands stay home. I knew that here, the hands MEET. I had practiced. I believed I was prepared. I was not prepared for KENNETH. Kenneth's handshake began before contact — his hand left his side at four paces, like a falcon leaving the glove. The grip: TOTAL. Not painful, but complete. A clasp communicating that Kenneth was glad to meet me, that Kenneth's business was thriving, and that Kenneth has risen at five a.m. for thirty consecutive years. Two pumps. Eye contact throughout. Frank as noon. I returned what I could. Sincere grip. Matched rhythm. Held the eyes. And Kenneth said the words: "Now THAT'S a handshake." I have had this sentence appraised by three separate neighbors, America. All three confirmed: highest praise. Rarely issued. Never false. One neighbor added, "Kenneth said that? About YOUR handshake?" — with a new respect that has not faded since. I have studied the institution properly now. Your handshake is a complete diplomatic system compressed into two seconds: too soft, you are hiding something. Too hard, you are PROVING something — which is worse. The ideal is firm, dry, brief. Strength, shown but not used. It is the bow, in grip form. We measure each other in my country too. We simply do it from farther away, and nobody risks a finger. But understand what Kenneth gave me, America. In Japan, mastery of the bow takes a lifetime, and no one will EVER tell you that you have achieved it. That would be unthinkable. Kenneth told me in FOUR SECONDS, in a hardware store, by the fasteners. That's a handshake. A judgment, issued instantly, by a man qualified to issue it. A man does not ask the falcon to land softly. He grips, gives two pumps, and is judged. Kenneth and I shake hands every Saturday now. He advises me on bolts. The falcon flies at four paces, two pumps, full eyes, every time. My bow I keep for my own people. The handshake belongs to Kenneth, and honestly, America, he has earned it.