Man with 12 fingers, 12 toes calls them "blessing"
(CBS/AP) How many fingers and toes do you have? For Yohandi Hernandez Garrido, the answer to that question is 24. The 37-year-old Cuban man has six perfectly formed fingers on each hand and six perfect toes on each foot.
PICTURES: Man with 12 fingers, 12 toes vs boy with 34 digits
Hernandez calls his extra digits a blessing, saying they set him apart and allow him to make a living by scrambling up palm trees to cut coconuts and posing for photos for tourists.
"It's thanks to my 24 digits that I'm able to make a living, because I have no fixed job," Hernandez said.
Hernandez's condition - known as polydactyly - is relatively common, occurring in about one of every 1,000 births, according to the website of Children's Hospital Boston. But it's rare for the extra digits to be so perfect. The condition often runs in families, but Hernandez is the only one in his family with extra digits.
"Since I was young, I understood that it was a privilege to have 24 digits," said Hernandez, who has a 10-year-old son with a woman who now lives in Havana. "Nobody has ever discriminated against me for that. On the contrary, people admire me and I am very proud."
Hernandez said he hopes he can be an example to children with polydactyly that there's nothing wrong with them.
"I think it's what God commanded," he said. "They shouldn't feel bad about anything, because I think it's one of the greatest blessings and they'll be happy in life."
