Letters

A dental hygienist at chairside examining a patient's gums with a periodontal probe

1840

Hygienists first.

Letter seven.

Dental tray with mirror, periodontal probe, explorer, a periodontal chart and a radiograph on a lightbox

1840

Everything I need is already in the room.

Letter six. The skills we have.

A cathedral termite mound on red earth at golden hour

1840

The wall talks back.

Letter five. Connections.

The junction between tooth and gum: the thin junctional epithelium with capillaries just beneath it

1840

Three windows.

Letter four. Time, space, scale.

An empty dental chair beside a window in early morning light

1840

The window is not a date.

Letter three. Kairos.

An empty nineteenth-century lecture room with wooden benches, a small table and pale window light

1840

Two men, a room, a verdict.

Letter two. Undo 1840.

A single empty wooden chair kept open at the end of a row, in soft window light

1840

I don't know.

Letter one. The unknown.