The Eccentric Mind's Stories

Date:
20 June 2007 Wednesday

Time:
3:40 pm


For many days... I think for many years
now, I have repeatedly had this dream about my tooth. The dream
involved a shaky tooth (one of the front teeth). The tooth was
shaking so badly that it was hanging by a vein (or something of that
sort). And invariably I was always eating during these dreams! I was
struggling to eat – trying every possible way to avoid chewing with
that tooth. Sometimes I was chewing softly, at other times I was
trying to eat with one side and I could feel the tooth shaking and
threatening to fall. The kind of feeling which I used to get as a
little kid. Then like the classic Hindi movie, the climax occurs! I
get tired of waiting for the tooth to fall and I chew harder –
almost as if with a vengeance! Like the only good guy in the movie, I
fight with all the pain. I chew the food and the tooth takes an
eternity to fall! Then the moment comes... I feel a hard stone like
thing in my mouth. The sweet blood flowing from the vacant space in
my mouth. That's how my dreams have been ending.


As I said earlier, I have been getting
similar dreams for many years now. At first, I thought that it only
put into expression my fears that my teeth will end up being like my
parents – really bad. That one day, my teeth will shake and fall
down – one by one...


I had reason to believe that 4 of my
teeth would be pulled out because almost 2 years back, we went to the
dentist and I was told that I would be put on a waiting list for the
operation, during which teeth would be pulled and I would have to
wear braces. I still do not know why it was called 'waiting list'.


Yesterday I went to the dentist... my
worst fear was that 4 teeth would have to be pulled out because there
was not enough space in my mouth for all of my teeth. One wisdom
tooth was already on its way out. And in the morning I had the same
dream about my tooth.


On the way, I examined the papers from
my previous visit. It said (I could actually understand what was
written!) that I had some kind of non aligned teeth and some expert
advice was required.


We walked into the dentist's clinic
– surgery no.9. The dentist happened to be a specialist –
an orthodontist (the specialist was the one whose advice was
required). The orthodontist's face was covered with the mask that
surgeons wear. Only his eyes were visible. I sat, or shall I say, I
lay down on the inclined chair. A bright light shone at my face and I
could not keep my eyes open. He started examining my teeth. After I
described the problem about my teeth and he had fiddled around with
his instruments enough, he turned to my father.


Why exactly did I have to get 4 teeth
pulled out? Why was my first sign of wisdom grating my cheek? As
usual, I kept quiet. And one by one the doc (i.e. orthodontist )
explained my problems.


The doc said that I had very crooked
teeth which, to be aligned, had to be put on braces. For the braces,
space had to be created. As it is my mouth was small ( it is now
official, because the doc expressly said so) and now that I was
becoming wise, I could almost feel my teeth vanishing away to make
room for the braces and teeth. The doc then explained the
technicalities, which is as follows.


To put braces, the doc required 6 mm of
space. Each tooth occupies about 10 mm, so pulling out four teeth
would result in an excess of 34 mm. The braces had to be put not only
to align the teeth but to also cover the extra space created so that
it would not look ugly. This process of aligning the teeth would take
two years during which I would be required to visit to him every
fifteen days. Very calmly, he said, pulling out the teeth is very
easy... just in two sittings... but it is the next phase which
required a lot of effort.


The very thought of my precious teeth
being pulled frightened me so much that I felt that they were already
gone! I put one hand on my mouth and felt my teeth to do a reality
check, and then kept feeling them through my lips. It was as if my
teeth were being robbed and in a desperate attempt to save them, I
was hanging on to them.


It seemed like the doc could read my
mind and continued to answer my next question. He said, “Then you
may ask why pull out 4 teeth and not just one?”. Our teeth are more
or less symmetrical. So if one tooth were to be pulled out, then the
jaw will tilt to one side. To prevent that, the corresponding tooth
on the other side of the jaw would have to be pulled out. Now it so
happens that not only is our jaw symmetrical horizontally, but also
symmetrical vertically. So the corresponding teeth would have to be
pulled out from the opposite jaw.


Then came the really shocking bit... I
still had a milk tooth!!! So in my case, first that tooth would have
to be pulled out – making it five teeth gone! It took me a while to
realise what had just been said. The doc pointed to the sole survivor
of the species called milk tooth. It was only later on, after
returning from the clinic that everything began to fall in place.


So now it seemed certain... my teeth
would go away – my signature vampire-like teeth would be destroyed.
My worst fear was coming true. As I was writing the obituary of my
teeth, the doc began chatting about how most of the people who had
got such a surgery done were unhappy about their teeth. Most people
wanted that beautiful perfect set of teeth (which all the glamorous
people in the world have) and would mainly get such a surgery done
for cosmetic purposes. Then I came in the discussion – I think it
was something like she may
not like her crooked teeth... Hold on! Who said I was
unhappy with my teeth? On the contrary I was happy with my unique
teeth. I had to step in and defend myself!


I made a faint
sound and the doc turned towards me with a questioning look. I said
with an embarrassing smile that I was happy with my teeth. The rest
of the conversation involved all three of us.


The doc then began
to briefly explain that pulling out the teeth was not a problem but
it was the subsequent two years which would require commitment and
the it should not be taken lightly. Only after discussing with the
whole family should the procedure begin.


It was
then that I began to see a tiny almost microscopic ray of light. Is
the doc giving us an option to avoid the operation? Was it not
supposed to be like I had to get my teeth pulled out and there was no
question of opposing the doc's advice? After a little more discussion
I tried to clarify whether the surgery was going to be a purely
cosmetic procedure. The doc said that the overbite was only a
mild to moderate problem which did not require such a procedure. He
said that in his area of specialization, all such procedures tend to
be cosmetic procedures only. The overbite was not so severe that it
needed the surgery.


Whoa! So what about that tooth that was
on it was out? After enquiring my age, he said that the phase within
which wisdom teeth come starts at 18 years of age and can extend till
the age of 25 years. These teeth almost invariably cause problems
when they come out. He said that they would automatically come lower
in the jaw over time. So no problems? Apparently.


While in the car, I remembered the
dream I had had in the morning. All this while I had thought it was a
manifestation of my worst fears (which it most probably was). But now
I felt (this may seem very weird) it could have been my
sub-conscience warning me about my milk tooth. Could I have predicted
the turn of events? May be I had started developing a new sense... my
sixth sense.


Sweet!

Date:
14 July 2007 Saturday

Time:
2:22 pm


Going to the beach after two years was
something that I was most excited about. For two years I had not
stepped out of Delhi. I was definitely suffering from nature deficit
disorder. Being the kind of nature lover that I am, living in the
urban jungle just did not do me any good. I had all the symptoms –
stress, depression, poor attention... So when we went to Chennai, the
first thing we had to do was to go to the nearest beach.


Unfortunately beaches are not what they
used to be... Even before we could step on the sand, all kinds of
vendors were trying to sell us something or the other. We did not
take off our foot-ware for fear of any glass pieces pricking our
feet. As we got closer to the water, we saw more and more plastic
bags, wrappers and all kinds of garbage thrown about. People eating
carelessly threw the packaging on the sand.


But the beach is huge and even though
there are all kinds things and shops spread all over, nothing can
hide the beauty of the sea. The sun had started setting and one could
see the horizon. It was not the picture-postcard kind of sunset in
which the sun bathes in the sea. We could not see the sun because of
the overcast sky. It was a pleasant dark blue sky which merged with
the sea in the distance. There were many tiny sea-shells all over the
beach and we picked up as many as we could. The wonder of nature
never ceases to amaze me. Although the shells are the size of the
nail on my little finger, they have such unique, intricate and
colourful designs. There were smooth ones as well as ones with
ridges. Most were flat molluscs but there were also the rarer long
spirals and snail shells.


Everyone in my family for generations
has had some kind of shell collection to boast about. There are so
many shells the size of a human fists. What really amazes me is that
my grandmothers and my mother hand-picked these from the beach! There
are also shells which my father brought for us from the Andaman
Islands which are the size of human heads. There are even clam shells
that measure one metre across. My father saw these kinds of shells
being used as bathtubs! Today, due to increasing human population on
the shore, not many big shells are found on the beach. But there are
many small ones washed up on the shore. Though there are many stores
selling big shells on the streets of Chennai, there is nothing like
the joy of picking shells from the beach.


Soon we were very near the water and
the warm, soft and slippery sand became firmer due to the water
content. There were tiny crabs crawling all over the place. It
appeared as if there was a boundary line separating the dry sand from
the water. This 'boundary line' was made by garbage strewn around.
Beyond this divider of dump, the sea was clean and clear. Every time
the waves came crashing on the shore, they would take away any dirt
thrown by uncivil humans.


We left our foot ware further away and
stepped into the approaching water with our bare feet. It seemed as
if the sea was welcoming us by washing our feet. In the distance we
could see huge waves – waves that were perhaps 2 metres high. But
by the time the water reached us, the level was just high enough to
reach our ankles. This was because as new waves came towards us, the
receding waves pushed the incoming waves and reduced their force. The
clash was as if there were two armies running towards each other to
fight and although the approaching waves won the battle, their
numbers were significantly reduced. We went further into the sea till
the water level reached our knees.


When the waves came, they brought along
with them many molluscs. But these were not like the empty halves of
shells we found on the dry part of the beach. These were closed with
live creatures in them. From what I have heard, these creatures can
only survive underwater. Against their will the water brings them
ashore. When the waves receded, the water took them away into the
sea. Every once in while, I could see these mysterious creatures peep
out of their homes in the shallow water and duck back inside. More
than once did I see them 'walking' on the sand under a thin film of
water. I might have even felt one on my foot which was buried under
the sand. There were also small holes in the wet sand which were
created when the water receded. These were, I suppose, for the
unknown creatures underneath so that they could breathe.


There is something friendly and scary
about the sea. On the shore, the cold water came in a friendly manner
and washed our legs-pretty much in the manner a dog would welcome its
owner. Sea water has many different salts which are good for the
skin. I have personally seen cracked heels get healed completely
after just a few hours of exposure to the sea water. As the waves
came crashing down at us, the sheer force of the water felt like a
massage. But the force with which the water receded was greater than
the force with which it approached us. Every time the water receded,
we could feel it trying to pull us towards it as if saying 'come,
play with me, like those other people who are having fun swimming in
me'.


The scarier side of the sea is its
unpredictability. Every now and then, a huge wave would come and
drench us even more. Sometimes while receding, the waves would change
their course and instead of receding in the same way that they came,
they would take a kind of U-turn. As a result, these receding waves
would bump into the incoming waves at an angle. This caused a huge
splash and sprayed water all over us.


We spent almost two hours at the beach
in this manner. The sky became darker and darker and before we knew
it, the evening changed into night. We could see a faint light in the
distance. It could have been a lighthouse, or a ship sailing – no
one could tell. The moon was out and we could see its light through
the clouds. Cloudy skies are always beautiful during the daytime. But
cloudy nights are sometimes spooky. For a little while, the moon
came out of its blanket, which gave the clouds a silvery colour. But
it was not at all scary. In fact, it looked magical. It may seem
very ordinary to most people, and me too, on most nights. But this
sight, on that day, seemed extra special. Perhaps it was the sea that
had passed on its charm to the sky.


Back in the car, our legs all covered
in sand and beginning to itch, I could not but help recall the song
“Somewhere... beyond the sea...”