Embracing Braces
Shhhllllppp! I sat at my desk with my friends and drank the chocolate milk through the giant gap in my two front teeth. My friends giggled and gave me the attention I had been craving.
My friends and I had similar personalities. We were happy, silly, and immature fourth graders. In fact, we were alike physically as well. We were short, young, and cute little girls. Only one thing differed between my two best friends and I; they had tooth jewelry and I didn’t.
“Mommy, can I have some tooth jewelry?” I asked when I returned from school that day.
My mom chuckled.
“What is tooth jewelry?” she asked as she turned around to greet me.
I sat down at the kitchen table while my mom prepared my favorite after school snack, ants on a log. As I munched on my tasty treat, my mom realized that I was talking about braces.
“You don’t need them, sweetie. Your teeth are perfect just the way they are.” said my mom as she began to clean the dishes.
I still wanted to have tooth jewelry. My two best friends, Rebecca and Julia, told me all about them.
“You get to choose what color you want them to be every time you go to the doctor’s office!” Julia exclaimed.
“And when you have braces you get to join the braces club!” stated Rebecca.
Christmas time came and I began to contemplate what I would ask Santa to bring me. At the top of my list were braces. I desired to be part of the so-called braces club.
Two days after Christmas break had ended, my mom drove my sister and I to the orthodontist for our first appointment. As I walked into the orthodontist, a surge of excitement rattled my bones. Just as I had hoped, I left the doctor’s with a full set of pink and blue braces.
My friends complimented me on my beautiful tooth jewelry.
“Woah! They are so cool!” exclaimed Julia.
“Now we all have braces!” added Rebecca.
Now, at 14 years old, I have come to realize that braces aren’t so great after all. Most of my friends have gotten their braces off. Now, all I want is to be braceless.
When I was younger I fell into peer pressure. My friends had braces, so I wanted to have them as well. However, even after reflecting on this time in my life, I am still persuaded by peer pressure. Ever since my friends have gotten their braces off, I have wanted to get mine off too.
Through this experience and many others, I have learned the importance of being unique. Everyone is different. We act differently, we talk differently, and we dress differently. Peer pressure should not sway our decisions. If all people were alike, life would become dull and flavorless.
Shhhllllppp! I sat at my desk with my friends and drank the chocolate milk through the giant gap in my two front teeth. My friends giggled and gave me the attention I had been craving.
My friends and I had similar personalities. We were happy, silly, and immature fourth graders. In fact, we were alike physically as well. We were short, young, and cute little girls. Only one thing differed between my two best friends and I; they had tooth jewelry and I didn’t.
“Mommy, can I have some tooth jewelry?” I asked when I returned from school that day.
My mom chuckled.
“What is tooth jewelry?” she asked as she turned around to greet me.
I sat down at the kitchen table while my mom prepared my favorite after school snack, ants on a log. As I munched on my tasty treat, my mom realized that I was talking about braces.
“You don’t need them, sweetie. Your teeth are perfect just the way they are.” said my mom as she began to clean the dishes.
I still wanted to have tooth jewelry. My two best friends, Rebecca and Julia, told me all about them.
“You get to choose what color you want them to be every time you go to the doctor’s office!” Julia exclaimed.
“And when you have braces you get to join the braces club!” stated Rebecca.
Christmas time came and I began to contemplate what I would ask Santa to bring me. At the top of my list were braces. I desired to be part of the so-called braces club.
Two days after Christmas break had ended, my mom drove my sister and I to the orthodontist for our first appointment. As I walked into the orthodontist, a surge of excitement rattled my bones. Just as I had hoped, I left the doctor’s with a full set of pink and blue braces.
My friends complimented me on my beautiful tooth jewelry.
“Woah! They are so cool!” exclaimed Julia.
“Now we all have braces!” added Rebecca.
Now, at 14 years old, I have come to realize that braces aren’t so great after all. Most of my friends have gotten their braces off. Now, all I want is to be braceless.
When I was younger I fell into peer pressure. My friends had braces, so I wanted to have them as well. However, even after reflecting on this time in my life, I am still persuaded by peer pressure. Ever since my friends have gotten their braces off, I have wanted to get mine off too.
Through this experience and many others, I have learned the importance of being unique. Everyone is different. We act differently, we talk differently, and we dress differently. Peer pressure should not sway our decisions. If all people were alike, life would become dull and flavorless.