Sunday, October 28, 2012

Orthodontics -- brace face, metal mouth, call it what you will -- is back in our lives



It's hard to sit here and say, yeah, I know how you feel son, I was young once and like you had to get on a bus every day and walk into a building full of judges who I was pretty sure -- no, damn sure -- were staring at me daily waiting, just waiting, biding their time, hoping I'd come walking into the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary school wearing a reason to be ridiculed.

Which I did. I walked into to school one day with a whole mouth full of reasons for those Catholic school kids to tease me.

But I got lucky. Orthodontics being the way they were at PBVM, I was in good company. Roughy, oh, EVERYONE had braces on their teeth at one time or another. So I wasn't alone. My good buddy Mike Hurley had braces for what seemed like forever. Even my first girlfriend, Debbie Rohlik, had 'em.



The other day my son and I walked into the fine offices of Dr. Carlin Wiemers. I know those offices well. They were the bane of my daughter's existence for two years as Dr. Wiemers' magic brackets and wonder wires -- and don't forget headhear -- transformed her crooked smile into a beautiful one. And how it's her brother's turn.

Sam has known this has been coming for a while. His mouth isn't exactly a picture of dental harmony. It looks a little like mine did, actually. Except mine was worse. And even though I had braces, my teeth don't exactly show it. But that's a story for another time.

The boy took it well. And to make sure he never forgets just how special that day was -- and to hopefully make sure he never forgets the financial sacrifice his parents are making to give him a million-dollar smile -- you have the semi-clever piece of writing before you.

Now, he's kind of a ham. So it's not like he'll completely hate the fact that his latest oral odyssey will be broadcast to the tens of readers to check in with Freep Spirit. But it'll embarrass him a little. And that's kind of how we roll in the Murray house.

If you're worried about him or feel badly for him, don't. I can guarantee you he's already plotting his revenge. It will swift, and it will be severe. That's fine. I struck first. Which reminds me of what I believe is Mexican proverb: "He who strikes first, strikes twice."


3 comments:

  1. You can't possibly make this kid any cuter, but now he will have the million dollar smile to boot! - oh... my son, Sam, tells me he's the smartest kid at Dakota Meadows! 'Sounds like a bright future to me! - Michelle

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  2. Braces can do wonders for children! As i child i got braces from http://www.dunn-orthodontics.com/, and have never regretted it, my teeth are amazing1

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  3. Wow, it seems that we can expect a brighter smile from Sam near soon. How was his first months of wearing a braces? I'm sure he did a lot of adjustments, and just like the other kids who go through the same situation, I'm sure that he also experienced some pain and discomfort. But, that's just normal thing, and it won't matter in the end, as he'll get a wonderful set of teeth.

    Randy Farmer @ Houston Smile Docs

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