shorthand

I hated my teeth in middleschool, felt they were fangs with an overbite. I sat for my school photo with my lower jaw thrust to rival the upper, creating an underbite that had my best friend in hysterics and my mother asking why my teeth were clenched. "Honey, why do you look so pained?" Valuable lessons for next year, when I learned to smile with my lips closed tight. The year after that, I didn't smile at all.

Five years later I remembered that mouths opened for a reason. I kissed my first boy, and he spent the night teaching me the importance of open lips. Europe taught me confidence and scolded that only flashing teeth do justice to ancient cathedrals and Roman walls.

But then I was covering my mouth when at dinner with friends, or throwing my hand before my lips when laughing too hard, or shielding my large smiles in conversation.Why did I feel such a need to protect such a part of my body? The mouth is sensual, expressive, and gorgeous--exactly why it needed to be hidden.