In our family, most of us don't come with straight teeth. Most of us require a little help. I wore braces. So did Luke, Shulamith, and Eli. Only Isaiah escaped. He was miraculously gifted with lovely, straight teeth. Even an orthodontist told me he didn't need braces, and they tend to think all kids needs them. Memories of my experience with braces are rather painful. Of course I'm thankful for them now; pre-braces pics of me are pretty pathetic (emphasis on the pathetic, not the pretty), but at the time, I wasn't sold on the idea.
To begin with, I had to have four permanent teeth removed before the orthodontic work began. This is the consequence of having a relatively small mouth, small bone structure, and very large teeth. I had way too many to fit in there. I'm sure dental technology has improved since then, but the day I had all four of those teeth pulled remains in my memory as one of the most painful experiences of my life, and keep in mind I've delivered five babies, four natural with no epidural! It was awful. It hurt so much, both during and after. I remember coming home with cotton packed in my sore and bleeding mouth, and lying on my bed sobbing. For what it's worth, I had all six of my wisdom teeth (yep, six!) removed a few years later, and that wasn't even remotely as painful as this.
The braces, themselves, weren't any more uncomfortable than what is typical. They're sore when they first go on; they're sore each time they are adjusted. The usual. However, in addition to regular braces, I had this other contraption called a "head gear." Now that was a sight. These straps went around my neck and over my head, attached to this big wire with two prongs that went into my mouth and attached to two bands around my back top molars. It was really beautiful. So beautiful that I refused to be seen in it by anyone outside my immediate family. Which was challenging because I was supposed to wear the thing 14 hours a day. I learned to sleep with it, but that still left five hours each day that I needed to hide inside my house.
Emotionally, I don't think I was quite ready for all this. I was 12, just like Seth, but I didn't face the situation nearly as maturely as he has. The day my braces went on, I came home with the list of "no no" foods, foods not recommended with braces, lots of good stuff like hard candy, taffy, gum, chips, and yes...popcorn. And that very night, my mom decided to make popcorn for the entire family. Except I couldn't have any. Can you spell pity party? I sat in my room, donned in ugly head gear, smelling the freshly popped popcorn my parents and brother were enjoying just around the corner. I felt positively downtrodden. The world, it seemed, had forsaken me.
I survived. Braces came off a couple years later, and like everyone does in that moment, I rubbed my tongue over my smooth, naked teeth in awe. I looked in the mirror, which revealed my new shiny white smile, and I realized it had been worth all the pain and suffering.
And now it is Seth's turn. Unlike me, he really wanted his braces. Consequently, he has handled the whole thing with incredible maturity and stoicism. Ne'er a complaint has he uttered, even when he needed to play his trombone in a band concert just hours after the braces went on. His mouth is sore. He's eating only really soft foods. But he's doing just fine. And don't worry--we won't be throwing any family popcorn parties any time soon. In fact, maybe ice cream is the choice today. Just maybe.
Tin Grin Tradition in the Erichsen-Webster Family!
