Swallow

Sami Schlichting

Info: We swallow 1.000 to 3.000 times a day. 1.000 to 3.000 moments of contact with the mucous membrane at the base of the tongue trigger reflexes that move liquid or crushed food from the oral cavity into the stomach via the esophagus with the help of twenty-six pairs of muscles. Drinking, gulping, choking — all contained within the same interaction of contraction and release, contraction and release. These are 1.000 to 3.000 moments of mediation between the body’s interior and exterior; 1.000 to 3.000 moments of sensory contact, communication, and incorporation — making the environment part of yourself. But these are also moments of pause, calm, embarrassment, and overload: swallowing to countenance the flow of incoming news and stimuli in moments of both apathy and activity.