Teeth:
I think motherhood, and womanhood, for that matter, is just a never-ending clenching of your teeth.
In girlhood, we clench our teeth to stay quiet, be polite, be pretty, and swallow anger.
In adolescence, we are clenching through catcalls, expectations, body changes, and pressure.
In motherhood, there is clenching through labor, sleepless nights, worry for your child, and the elusive balance of what was and what will be.
All before the last chapter, which I call generational echoes, where we realize “your mother probably clenched her teeth too, and so did your grandmother”.
But when I look at my daughter, sleeping soft-mouthed in the dark, I make a small promise to the future.
I hope she never learns how to do it.
-GNK-

















