A Drawer Full of Teeth

At some point I guess they have to go.

But when?

As it stands right now I have I have nine teeth sitting in my sock drawer in my bedroom.  They will be joined tonight by another one.  Tyler lost another tooth this morning.  Each time it happens now there is less and less fanfare involved.  There were no crazy outbursts like there used to be when he lost a tooth. He simply got a ziploc bag from the kitchen, put the tooth inside and put it under his pillow.

The tooth fairy is coming tonight.

Instead of whisking those teeth off to a far away place, she puts them in my sock drawer.  Then it's up to me to decide what to do with them.  So far I haven't a clue, much like a lot of the stuff I keep from when the kids were little.  Their first hair cuts, their first pair of shoes, even some of my favorite shirts of theirs from when they were babies.

I collect a lot of things.

But why?

Sure all of this stuff might be fun to look back on one day, but I honestly don't know if I will want to.  The thought of being an old man and rummaging through a box of teeth and old shoes might be too much for me to take.  Them getting older is something that I struggle with now, what will it be like in 20 years or even 50 if I'm still alive?

After tonight there will be ten teeth in my drawer.  Since Tyler is almost nine and learning the ways of the world, I don't know how many more teeth the Tooth Fairy will put in there.  One day that phase of our lives will be over.  Then what?

A drawer full of teeth... I might just have to leave them there.

John Willey - Daddy's in Charge?

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