The Black Box

My brother and I were going through Mother’s things after her passing.  John-Paul picked up the black box and opened the secret compartment a top.  “Awe” I heard him say as I turned around to find a tear streaming gently down his face.  He handed me the box and I looked in the secret compartment only to find it filled with baby teeth.  My Mother kept everyone of our baby teeth in the secret compartment of the black box. 

It was a bittersweet moment for both my Brother and I so I decided to lighten things up as I replied “Mommy was the tooth fairy?”

We both laughed with happy tears and my brother said, “She was a great woman who wore many hats.”  I agreed and began to reminisce of the agonizing pain of when I lost my baby teeth.

My first one was my left front tooth.  I remember it wiggling and playing with it all day wondering when it would come out so I could get my money from the tooth fairy.  We sat at dinner and I barely ate as I kept wiggling the tooth.  My father, infamous for one line zingers said to me “If you want that tooth out so bad I can tie a string to it and the other end will be on the door knob and when I slam the door shut, poof the tooth will pop out.”  That sounded painful and a chill went down my body just thinking about it. 

I declined his generous offer and just kept wiggling with my tongue.  I went to sleep that night and my Mother told me, when the tooth is ready it will come out. 

I lay in bed still wiggling when all of a sudden I felt the tooth hanging by a string.  This is it I thought to myself as I pushed my little glasses up on my face and took a deep breath as I yanked the hanging tooth right out of my mouth.  Yay I will get money tonight as I jumped out of my bed and knocked on brothers door screaming “John-Paul, wake up I lost my first tooth.”  He was not amused and rolled over to go back to sleep.  Forget him I thought, I will have more money than him as I scurried downstairs to tell Mommy and Daddy.  I quickly knocked and then busted through their bedroom door screaming and holding up my tooth.  “Look Mommy and Daddy, my tooth came out can we leave it for the tooth fairy tonight?” 

Sure my Mother replied as she went to her closet and pulled out a miniature sized pillow with a little pocket in the front to place the tooth.  I remember that pillow well, it was checkered with yellow and white and the little pocket had a duck sewed onto it.  My parent’s brought me back up to bed and we placed the mini tooth bearing pillow under my bed pillow.  My Mother then said, “You lost a tooth late at night and the tooth fairy probably started her rounds so you better fall asleep fast so she can come tonight, remember she only comes only if you are sleeping.” 

“Okay” I replied as my Mother took my little glasses off my face and placed them on my nightstand and tucked me in.  They both kissed me goodnight and I was off to dreamland. 

I awoke the next morning and immediately searched under my pillow and found five dollars!  I am rich!  I am rich!  I screamed as I knocked on John-Paul’s door and then busting through and waving my money in his face.  He was not amused and rolled over to go back to bed.  He is just jealous I thought as now I am a millionaire and he is not.  I ran downstairs to show Mommy and Daddy. 

“Wow, congratulations my father replied – you can pay the bills this month.”  I giggled and replied “silly Daddy that’s your job.” 

We all laughed and my mother said “we can go to the bank and deposit that into your bank account”

I had already spent the money in my head on hard candy and bubble gum from the Mr. Bulky candy store in the mall, but I liked my Mother's tactic to save my money and have her buy me the hard candy and bubble gum on her dime. 

After breakfast, my Mother and I went to the bank.  Mother filled out the deposit slip and as we approached the counter she held me up so I could hand the teller my slip and million dollars.  Before the teller could speak I said “That is money from my first tooth I lost, do you want to see?”  Not really giving her a choice if she wanted to see or not I leaned over the counter with my mouth wide open pointing to the empty space in my mouth.  “Congratulations” the teller replied, keep saving she said and interest on the account will maximize your money so you have more.  

We deposited my millions and were on our way home. 

Interest I kept thinking to myself as I secretly counted the remaining baby teeth in my mouth and at five bucks a pop, I will never have to work a day in my life.  I smiled and began working on my right front tooth. 

It took me a while, but a few weeks later my right front tooth finally popped out. 

It was bedtime and we placed my mini tooth pillow under my bed pillow and I was off to bed dreaming of my mansions and Corvettes that I would be able to have with my tooth fairy money.  I awoke the next morning ready to collect my million dollars once again only to find A DOLLAR?!?! 

What a cheapskate I thought to myself as I marched downstairs to demand an answer. 

I sat at the breakfast table lamenting to parents of how cheap the tooth fairy has become.  “Can you believe her” I said to them.  ”She went from five dollars to one dollar, who does that?” 

My Mother chimed in, “Well the last tooth was your first tooth so she probably gave you a little extra for the special occasion.” 

"Do you think it will be a dollar going forward for all of my other baby teeth?” I asked.

My Mother replied, “I would imagine so.”

I sat there thinking how this threw a big wrinkle in my interest amortization schedule.  I went from tooth fairy money plus interest on five bucks a pop to billionaire and now I had to recalculate and adjust.  Just then my Father spoke “And when you get your wisdom teeth out, you’ll have to pay taxes.”

Taxes, I forgot about them and at this rate I will have to get a job when I am older and at that moment my plan had been foiled.