I got orthodontic braces at an older age than most...the summer between my junior and senior year of high school. It made for a different relationship than most patients had with the 20-something female assistants in Dr. Ingleman's office. (At least, my fantasy life told me it did.) But two years later, when those braces came off, I was given the following farewell "card" and it made it seem as if my daydreams were accurate after all.
[Editor's Note: The "black thing" mentioned in this poem was a rubber mold designed to fine-tune the placement of my teeth.]
Dewey, Dewey,
Blonde and blue, don't you know - we love you
With your sensuous mouth, braces and all
For such charms you made us fall,
OH, those tender lips we did touch,
We will miss them so very much.
From now on your mouth filled with black
Will no more do that famous "Dewey Smack"
The fun we shared for two years long,
To miss that now; it all seems wrong.
We'll say goodbye to those monthly visits
And farewell to those shiny rivets
Taking those bands apart
Has caused all of us to have broken hearts.
Don't forget in years to come,
Who made you cute and quite handsome.
Now you'll have to bite, bite, bite
On that black thing - oh, so tight.
Don't be sad, now that the time has come to say bye
Just think of all the times we've had to say hi!
Judy, Cindy, Jane
