Tooth Fairies and Pixie Dust

Big A lost a tooth tonight.

Not a milestone of gigantic proportions, to be certain. Not her first, not her last, but this one, this one was tricky.

For the last tooth she lost was a couple of years ago. And back then, the Tooth Fairy came sweeping through her window at night, leaving behind pixie dust and letters written in the colors of the rainbow. Back then, Big A definitely believed in magic and fairies and pixie dust.

We all know what can happen to some beliefs over the period of time, within the passing of hours, and weeks, within moments and months, let alone the period of two years. And let's not forget, Big A isn't your average nine year old. She's nine, going on older and wiser than me.

I sent a text to her dad, "What do we do"? And when he didn't respond in the time I deemed appropriate, which was about, oh, 19 seconds, I decided to veer out on my own.

"Huh, I wonder if the Tooth Fairy knows that we moved"? So tricky, this humble servant.

"Um, probably, since people move all. the. time". Eyebrow raised, probably wondering how the hell she got so smart coming from my womb.

"Mom, I do wonder something though". My heart swooping, I was careful to turn and look into the cupboard, busying my face so that she couldn't watch it fall.

"If I don't write a letter to the Tooth Fairy, do you think they'll still write one to me"?

"Probably, Big A. I mean, who knows, she might be really busy now, but I'm sure she probably will."

"Why do you think it's a She?"

"What?"

"Why do you think it's a She? I mean, it could be a He, right?" Her smart ass grin lingering, clearly enjoying posing a question I'd never thought of.

I looked at her for a few seconds, and then said, "I don't know. Maybe."

She smirked and flounced up the stairs to the shower while I wrote a few letters from the Tooth Fairy to Big A in my mind:

Dear Big A,

Seriously? You thought I could be a man? Do you know any men that know where Jo Ann Fabrics is located? Let alone where the hell the pixie dust is located within that store?

Jesus. Here's your dollar. If you're going to spend it all in one spot, may I suggest it be on helping to pay for the removal of the dagger from my heart.

The Tooth Fairy

*****

Dear Big A,

A Man? You thought I could be a man? Hello? Your letters have been laced with ribbon and painted with glitter, on painfully chosen paper, not grease stained from hot dogs and bearing rings from beer bottles, scribbled on the back of fast food bags.

And I didn't sign them, "Go Team".

And they were written in pastel. In calligraphy.

You're smart, you can do the math.

Love (grudgingly),
The Tooth Fairy

*****


And here is the note that Big A will actually be getting:

Dear Big A,

Wow! I haven't collected one of your teeth in a long time! It took me a minute to find your new house, but I'm so glad that I did.

You're getting so big I can hardly believe it. I bet a lot of things have changed for you since I last saw you sleeping. Not much has changed for me, except now I'm using a computer to type my letters instead of writing them all by hand. I can't believe how much time it saves!

Remember that tooth that you lost playing soccer? I still have that one on a special shelf. There were three other kids since you that lost them during a soccer game, so their teeth are up there, too.

And now you've lost a tooth on the first day of the Fourth Grade, and on the same day that you finally got your back hand-spring. I don't think there will be many other kids that will have a tooth on that shelf.

It was good to see you again, Big A. I'm sure I'll be back soon~you're getting to the point of losing a few more teeth.

And, just so that you know, I love how smart and funny you are~but I really hope you were just giving your mom a hard time when you asked her if I was a boy. You didn't really think that I could be a boy, right?

I mean, how many boys do you know that wear skirts and carry pixie dust and sparkling wands?

Love,
The Tooth Fairy

****

What can I say? I'm a Servant, not a Saint.