Life at Home: Monday

Mine are way more professional.

"All you need is a Little Faith to ease this old world's aches and pains."

These are the words on the poster that hangs on the ceiling. I have been looking at this poster every six months to a year since I was four. The shaggy old dog lying in the grass with a small kitten on his head have lost their color. The green grass, and fur of the orange tabby have all but disappeared into shades of grey.

There's a jump as the chair begins it slow lowering back and Kelly's smiling face appears above mine. I have had the same dental hygienist since I was four (except once–I ended up with my neighbor who works in the same practice). I stare up at the faded, tired old dog while she scrapes the small metal hook against my teeth. I watch his forlorn eyes as she turns on the small buzzing toothbrush. Grape toothpaste, every time.

As she finishes she hands me a magazine and tells me it might be a few minutes, but she'll tell "Doc" I'm ready. I flip through the pages of Self magazine. Dr. Volmer comes in at a pace paramount to a slow drip of a faucet. He says hello at the same pace and asked how I am at the same pace. He pulls the chair over at the same pace and lowers my chair so far it feels like I may fall back on my head. He runs his metal hook over my teeth at the same pace. Every visit he has a little less hair and his faucet drip pace is a little slower. He mumbles a slow, "Beautiful teeth" to which Kelly enthusiastically concurs.

I am released and they both stare as I stand up. "Am I good? My teeth not falling out?" I put forth an effort to extract something new from him. A slow laugh (same pace) and a shake of a head. I follow Kelly to the front desk where the ladies who run the bills give me the thumbs up. They'll just file my bill with my Mom's insurance card.

I go back through the familiar waiting room with the old Andrews High School yearbooks and dated Highlights magazines and pull open the solid red door. The old brown outdoor carpet covers the three steps down to the parking lot. I throw my free floss in the purse on my passenger seat and pull out, headed for the library, not for books but for the librarians....but that's another story.

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