Today is Papa's birthday. I think he would've been 103. He lived a long life, though I wish Bill and Jarred had been in my life when he was still living.
I do not recall a time that Papa had his own teeth. He only wore his teeth when he wore a suit. And I gotta tell you, I hated when he wore them. It scared me when I was little! He looked and sounded different. I remember that he could eat just about anything with those gums until he was well into his 80s.
About the time Granny passed, Papa stopped being able to eat steak. Eventually, he only ate soft foods. Now when I say soft, I'm not kidding. He used to pour himself a bowl of cornflakes and milk before he went to bed at about 7pm and put it in the fridge so it would be soft enough to eat for breakfast. I thought about that this week when after two spoons full, my cornflakes were already soggy.