See that tooth, The one that is longer than the other. Yeah, me too. My eye goes right to it when I look at an image of myself.

When I was a kindergartner, I was dared to run and then jump and slide on an ice patch at lunch recess. I was super confident I was going to stick the landing. I totally bit it. I broke my nose, i chippedmy tooth (like broke it in half diagnolly) and was bleeding all over the place, so much so that a teacher lent me her mitten to catch the bleeding. I remember being in the chair at the dentist that afternoon and staring at the photo of fall trees above the chair. This veneer isn't the original, but my dentist says it is in great shape. He could fix it very inexpensively, but I am terrified about the process. So until I get over my fear, I am stuck with looking at it in photos.

My loved ones love these images of me. They are the ones who see me this way unfiltered, unedited everyday. Images of our true selves are what will be remembered by our loved ones. Wrinkles, uneven teeth, a few more pounds than we'd like, I could alter all of this with technology, but I choose to rembmeber, and pass on the stories that are behind the imperfections. So when I'm gone, hopefully my kiddos will say, "remember that story of mom when she chipped her tooth?" and their kiddos will know it too.