THE HISTORY OF TEETH
For Mum In the beginning, we have no teeth. We depend on our mother. We depend on her for nourishment; we depend on her for love and security. Then at about age one we get our first set of teeth, ‘milk’ teeth’. At the same stage we start to exercise our will to move about the world, to investigate the space around us and our bodies. We chew all that we can find. Then aged six, these temporary, rehearsal teeth start to fall in preparation for the big ones, the ones that are to remain with us for the rest of our lives. With them, we will be able to bite, chew, digest, and smile. By that same stage we are psychologically formed. Events, experiences that happen then will shape us for the rest of our lives. If they do not fall, the lucky ones will carry them until death sees them out. In Garifuna the word for teeth and navel is the same: ‘nari’. What do Garifuna know about the connection between our teeth and our mother? Navel, because it is the symbol of Mother that we carry t...