That Toothy Grin

My daughter Remy has seven ‘mobile’ teeth. They’ve started to wobble. Some are ghoulish and dangling by a thread, showing their oyster-insides. She can’t chew on them and gets irritated. There’s a huge celebration when one falls out, and since the rather painful Tooth Fairy discussion, she has discovered I keep them all in a small scarlet box with a bow on the top. She likes to inspect them every so often. There are myriad ways teeth are treasured after they come out. In some countries, teeth are offered to the Tooth Mouse with a prayer or song in the hope the child’s adult teeth will grow as strong as a rodent’s. In France and Switzerland it is ‘Le Petit Souris’ who leaves them a gift or money in exchange for their little chompers. In parts of Africa, children throw lost upper teeth on the roof and bury lost lower teeth in the ground. The reverse is true in East Asia. Teeth live on even after they have fallen out, not least because enamel has the same strength level as quartz crystal.  Dr Estelle Lazer, forensic archaeologist from the University of Sydney says "Teeth tend to survive well. Some for tens of thousands of years.” I like the thought of gatherings of teeth all co-habiting in odd places. Animal teeth and human teeth all mixed up together. No delineation of race, gender, sexual preference, just, you know, teeth. It’s interesting how teeth show up in our language. An excruciating experience is like ‘pulling teeth’, someone is ‘fed up to the back teeth’, try speaking through ‘gritted teeth’ and ‘cutting your teeth’ learning a new skill. Teeth-cutting for babies from 6 to 12 months can come with swollen cheeks, glazed eyes and possible fevers.  Wearing amber beads helps with inflammation and psychic protection. It is an initiation into physicality, the beginning of a period where children immerse themselves in mastery of the physical, learning to sit, crawl, walk, run, jump, climb, speak, an endless and miraculous number of skills depending on their own natural rhythm. Once they reach 6 or 7 years old and their ancestral milk teeth begin to fall out, a new sensibility develops, a new awareness. The emergence of their 32 adult teeth begins and these teeth are of their own making, their own independent creation. Physically, symbolically and linguistically teeth carry power and strength. I’m not sure how my daughter would feel about me making a toothy necklace to wear for good luck but I have thought about it.