it is after dinner
six o’clock
in the oldies ward
my colleague
carries a tray
holding fifteen silver cups
each cup contains
a set
of pearly whites
uppers
lowers
uppers and lowers
students
collect the teeth
after each meal
and scrub them
at the laundry sink
but the tray
when placed too close
to the edge
is unstable
and
not for the last time
in student history
the choppers fly
~