Sorry that it doesn't work for you digits. The vid. It was the best I could find that helped me explain it.
The main thing is....only the top stick moves. The point is used with the bottom sticks point to make like a tweezer action. The bottom stick never moves.
I figured out how to hold them right, and was doing pretty good at only moving the top one... but everytime I got a hold of something the ends would cross and flip it back into the bowl. The scoop&slurp method got the job done.
I spent a lot of time in Japan when I was a Seabee so they're almost second nature to me. I use the Japanese style. Japanese chopsticks have sharp ends and Chinese flat ends. Most beginners find the Chinese style easier to learn.
OMG hoodat!!..i can't believe that you just mentioned Seabee!! My dad was a WW2 bee, on some ship with a (?) Norwegian name...that got torpedoed in Subic Bay...I think. Anyhoo....he is 88 now....and wouldn't touch rice forever..lol.
I was also a Seabee wife for 15 years. Ex was in NMCB 74, and NMCB 7.
I learned how to use chopsticks as a Navy wife. We lived in GTMO for 2 yrs, and I think I learned down there.