Dressing up kit 1970’s style

Shoes, ugly black clumpy laceups

Looking like the shoes boxes

Leather, shiney with a slight squeak when I walked

I had to buy them

Hospital issue, I paid they supplied

How I hated those shoes

Their only saving grace

The first step in my new career

It was all about the right image

Skirt measured six inches from the floor 

Height of hat

Belt colour demonstrating status

Flat black shiney shoes Thick black stockings

The starched apron, worn when working

Removed for meals 

 

 Collarless Grey cotton dress, white piped sleeves

Three dresses to last the week

7 stiff white starched collars 6 collar studs

12 pearl buttons with metal fasteners

7 starched white aprons

3 white starched cotton shapes

To be folded into hats

One pair of sturdy black shoes

The nurse kit

The first day I wore it I  was so excited

On the threshold of being Nurse 

Ok Student my black clad foot

was on the ladder

I added the upside down watch 

A pen in my pocket, hair neat and tidy

I stepoed from girl to nurse as I walked

into the classroom to meet my peers

The navy blue clad tutor with the wide 

frilly starched hat

Read us the rules

Then she inspected us, looking 

at our attempts to look the part

Most of us were in trouble hats too 

big, hair untidy, shoes tied incorrectly

little misdemeanors demonstrating our 

unsuitability to make the grade.

My misdemeanor those shoes

Laced incorrectly

I hated those shoes

Rules and responsibilities

Disipline a corner stone of our training

When I qualifyed as a staff nurse

and the rules relaxed they were 

discarded. New black shoes for the 

modern nurse.