Today the 24th of September 2013, it is my 29th Birthday. People say that if a person will have full set of 32 teeth, she/he will possess blessing power. I count my teeth by my tongue and it is 31 and one is cavity. Among 31 teeth one is a pseudo crown tooth made up of material to make a China Cup.
When I was a boy I had unusually large front teeth. They had become my identity. My friends used to tease me calling 'falike' which means having plank like tooth. In the village animals are kept in the barn and to protect animals from Earthly cold they keep wooden planks as a bed for animals. People used to make fun of me saying 'my front tooth is enough for one mature buffalo to sleep'
My milk teeth are gone. Nothing is permanent. My milk teeth were changed till I was twelve. Four wisdom teeth were grown when I was from 22 to 24 years. I had diarrhea for almost two years during that growth. Due to decay of tooth I had to uproot one when I was 17 so I have now cavity and 31 teeth.
My teeth, they are always useful to me but also they have always become problematic to me. When my soft tongue touches my hard monstrous teeth; my past rewinds in my mind as cinema reel. My teeth are weaker and I believe they will leave me before I will be old than I imagine how my face would look like.
One day I asked my mother when I was student at grade five while she was applying oil in my body when I was taking sun bath why my teeth are weaker. She did not say me any answer so I asked her many stories of her life. Based on the stories I have listened I have come to this conclusions why my teeth are sensitive, weaker and more…
- My mother got married when she was seventeen and gave birth to my sister when she was 18, me at 20 and brother at 21. When I used to walk with my mother when I was 17, people used to make fun of her saying I look like elder brother and see as a younger sister.
- I came to know that my mother had one strange habit when I was floating in her womb. She used to eat the soft deposited rocks as a cake. Now I know that many womens in the village still eat mud during their carriage time which doctor says a disease caused by lack of Iron and other some nutrients. May be this had some effect on me. One day I brought a rock while returning back from school and said; ' Mother may I eat this rock?, this is sweet like a cake'' She was feeling very shy and when I remember my mother being here in the Kathmandu city her picture of that moment comes in my mind.
- After three days of my birth, mother fell sick. Following her I also was badly sick. Mother got well after two weeks from typhoid but my health went continuously deteriorating. One day they felt that I was dead and they kept me wrapped in a mat in a courtyard. Next morning when I was discovered alive and I was cured. May be this deathly sickness has some effect on it.
- As I was born in between my sister and brother, I did not have long term for breast feeding. My brother came and stole. May be this can have effect.
- As I was born in a lower middle class family in rural part of the country, my child hood was average. May be due to lack of some nutrients in the diet may have caused this.
I bought my first tooth brush when I was student at seventh grade. I had a bad habit of stealing tooth paste and eat it. When the tooth paste was given for brushing, I used to swallow it, and brush my teeth with hard paste less brush. From grade eight to nine of two years I brushed my teeth with local tooth brush plants Achyranthes aspera (apamarga), Achyranthes bidentata Blume (Dattiban), Azadirachta indica A. Juss (Neem), Jatropha curcas (Sajiban) etc. I only used to brush my teeth when I was not lazy to do it.
My tooth started getting decayed. I had to leave school because of tooth ache. It was the year of 2055 BS, the time of Dashain, I had bad tooth ache. Dashain came for other people but it did not come for me that year. My friends were eating meat, enjoying but I was in bed. I did not got better till the day of teeka and was taken to a witch doctor (the local shaman) for cure. The shaman spoke very politely and kindly. He went in the forest to collect the 'buti' (medicine). When he came back he ordered his wife to heat the mustard oil. He droped two luke warm oil drops in my ear and kept the leafy powder. After a minute he kept the moving germ like thing in a plate and said ''boy your tooth germ has come out''. I got better after.
After the festival there was a free dental camp in our school. I went there and doctor examined mine teeth. They suggested uprooting my decayed tooth and it was done. I was sad to lose by grinding teeth because I knew that I was losing it forever. My tongue mostly goes on to that pit.
I was the best student of my class in school. I come from special location. That is the last line where the Aryans (people from Indian origin) live and beyond that in the north the people from Tibetan origin live. In our school most of the students were from ethnic communities like Gurung and Tamang. The students from Brahmin, chhetri community were always treated badly by some Gurung boys. The gurung boys were very strong and they were threat to us. We had to always learn ways to please them or run away from them because they did not liked Brahmin boys very much. Their main aim would be to become Gurkha soldier. As I was first boy of the class I had to be very careful. There was a boy named Dhan who was a name of fear to many students and teachers too. He was a spoiled child of ex British army. He always wanted to be close friend of me but I always wanted to keep distance because they used to smoke marijuana, crack vulgar jokes, do stupid things etc. I had to always help Dhan do his homework. One day I did not had time to do his homework and he was insulted badly by math teacher in front of Girls. After the school I tried to escape and run away but it was unsuccessful. He took me to the bank of Marshyangdi river and hit my face on t he rock. My lips had cut and one tooth was fractured. The enamel layer had gone and I could feel soft pulp with my tongue. To complain about this to anyone was mean to invite more trouble. When I went home, my sister asked what happened to mine large tooth and I told her that I went to swim in Marshyangdi River after school, dived into the water pool, was hit by stone and evil fate did follow. In the evening I was beaten by my father and was not provided food because I had company with bad boys and I killed my study time swimming.
Slowly the tooth started getting dark. It became a black dead tooth. It changed my identity. From plank tooth person my identity was changed to dead teeth having person. The winter days were bad for my teeth. The dead tooth had special sensitivity. I used to feel it while drinking hot and cold things. I gave up my tea drinking. I lived under this pain for four years.
When I came Kathmandu for studying bachelors, I went for tooth check up. For tooth check up I went to People's Dental College in Nayabazar. When I was in a bed and doctor was looking at my mouth through microscope and focus lens, he called all the intern students and said ''Come here, here has come a University for you''. He said that I had everythings in my mouth to teach his students. They cleaned my teeth and gave some suggestions. I was told to fill gap of two teeth and put a crown on the black dead teeth after RCT.
I had to go to the doctor for four weeks each after four days. The doctor was to treat my tooth from the root and put a crown made of gypsum on the last week. On the first day the lady doctor who was about age of 26 started working on my tooth. She drilled, hammered, made holes by needled and my tooth became hollow. They cut in half. It looked so funny. I had to sleep there in the bed for one hour like as a baby and she would work on it. It was strange experience to feel touch by gloved hands in the mouth.
On the third week i went to the doctor as usual. This was the final day to extract all the difilements from the root of my tooth and put medication. The lady doctor and her assistance had made all ready to work on my tooth. When doctor inserted two needles in my tooth and started working, she had a ring in her cell phone. I had needle and cotton in the mouth and kept on waiting but doctor was busy in the phone conversation. An hour passed but she was busy in her communication in newari language. It was unbearable for me so I decided to run away and did exactly. Since that time I have no much faith on 'white coats' but I sometimes laugh at myself when I remember that day.
I did not go anywhere to treat my tooth for six months. I had a reason not to go. My tooth was in worse condition. It was very week, a hollow and it would had been broken easily if properly and consciously the food was not bitten. I had no extra money to again go for tooth treatment so I requested my mother to send money. My mother had heifer buffalo. She sold it and sends eight thousand rupees to treat my tooth. For few days it was very strange to have a pseudo crown tooth in the mouth. I sometimes felt this tooth very heavy as the eight thousand rupees prices heifer buffalo is hanging in my Jaw.
Now I am fine and used to with my crowned tooth. I have to always keep it neat and clean. I should always be precautious, if the food particles gets struck and decays, it can rotten the roots and tooth can fall down. I have to always make sure that I brush my teeth at least ones in a day. After putting the crown in the teeth, I had asked the doctor- how long this mine like tooth does last for. He answered; 'it depends upon your hygienic practice, if all goes well-up to 15 years. Already eight years have gone and seven yet to come. One day when it will fall down how I would be looked in the mirror with front tooth missing. I got married six months ago and my wife till now does not know that my front tooth is crowned pseudo tooth. I have big mouth and when I smile you can look to find out my pseudo tooth.
