Life is good

Finding it was unexpected; he had forgotten it still existed and was taken aback by the power it still holds on him…
A simple toothbrush, a plain boring useless one … but to him it used to be much more than that.
Brown, cheap, made out of plastic, a fake ergonomic left-handed version that didn’t fit his hand and the depression of his thumb as many of the really good ones do. He had to keep repositioning the toothbrush in his hands every time he changed from brushing one side of his mouth to the other, so as to reach all the surfaces of his teeth.
The dilemmas he used to have every time he used this toothbrush: Do I go against the handle shape or do I rotate my grip on the handle… That was the “question”!

The damn toothbrush didn’t have any advantage over others. It wasn’t even small enough when compared with the conventional ones, his mouth was small so he usually found it uncomfortable to use big brushes when brushing his molars.

With resentment he remembers very well how happy he was the day he bought this toothbrush, the advertisement and the sales person bewitched him with awesome promises: “Super-smile 45° Ergonomic Toothbrush” – Brush your teeth at the proper angle without bogus bells and whistles! “Ha, ha, ha, haaaaa…” Is his answer to all those lies, none of what was promised was true; the toothbrush was everything but that! – Bitterness fills his mouth, so he swallows the saliva with difficulty and annoyance.
After a few seconds he smiles, joyfully enjoying his revenge… he found a new love… just a hundred meters away from his flat… at the local supermarket. Just in time to guarantee the greatest, healthiest and brightest smiles a ship’s Captain of his category should have. So, the day he boarded his ship he did it with pride and stature, showing everybody his best smile. Life has been great ever since; the last two weeks were amazing, no disappointments or regrets of any type. Now he is at peace and fulfilled, smiling all the way, felling fresh and clean. No more hand position dilemmas, no more thumb unfitting troubles! Life was good again…

His new brush was designed for comfortable brushing with soft multi-level bristles. This one has a rounded-end, polished bristles specifically designed to protect the enamel and gums. The curved bristles fitted perfectly the contours of his teeth and its small head reached effectively all the hard-to –reach places. It also has a non-slip rubber grip that kept the brush snug in his hand for better control.
Life was indeed good again!

With determination and without hesitation he grabs the damn toothbrush and then, almost violently he opens the head’s porthole … after a small hesitant pause – to enjoy the moment – he throws the brush as far as his strong arm lets him. With joy he observes the brush disappearing in the Atlantic Ocean, with the certainty that this was the very last time he was going to see the damn toothbrush…

A wild smile illuminates his dark eyes when he turns back to the sink where his new love is awaiting for him. With tenderness he grabs his new toothbrush and with perfect precision he places the exact right amount of toothpaste required for a perfect tooth brushing.

Life is indeed good again…

This post is a submission to Magpie Tales #20, writing on a theme of the above photo.

© 2010 Gabriela Abalo