The tap has been leaky for a while, and the dripping noise which used to constantly get on my nerves has started to fade into familiar background noise.
As with all things, we resist at first but learn to accept and let go of what we cannot control.
When I came to this house, I came with 2 buddies from the Factory as part of a 3-pack. We had nicknamed ourselves Red, Green, and Blue after the colours printed on our backs.
It wasn’t long before Red had to go.
Then Green left.
And a couple of months later it was my turn.
Life as a manual toothbrush is not what I expected
As I settled into my place on the bathroom sink, I noticed that Red and Green were nowhere in sight.
The grumpy Toothpaste told me that the life of a toothbrush was short, and not to expect too much.
“When your bristles start to bend, you go into the bin.” he said.
I refused to believe it at first.
In the factory we were told that we had a purpose. We would be on the gumlines helping people to scrub out harmful bacteria and plaque to protect their enamel layers.
It was something to be proud of.
My first time in my owner’s mouth
But the first time my owner used me to brush his teeth, I was horrified.
He brushed so hard on the front parts of his teeth that I could almost see the enamel layer peeling off and his gums turning redder.
He neglected some corners of his mouth where the food bits and bacteria remained and I could do nothing to brush these areas clean.
I felt so helpless.
It seemed like the purpose I had been sold was a big fat lie.
The truth was that as a manual toothbrush I could do nothing to help my owner have cleaner teeth because he couldn’t hear me tell him what he needed to do even if I was yelling till my bristles fell out.
Mouthwash tried to comfort me a few times, telling me to let it go and accept that I was already doing my best.
My owner was better off having me than not having his teeth cleaned at all.
He told me that Red and Green had left after being worn out to the point where they couldn’t help our owner any more, but they had done their best.
Is this the life of a manual toothbrush?
- Wishing I could do more to clean the parts one can clearly see need more cleaning,
- Looking away from the horrific damage my owner is inflicting on his poor teeth by scrubbing with excessive force.
I’ve accepted that I have a role to play in the trenches of dental hygiene warfare, and that’s enough for now.
I have a dream for all manual toothbrushes
There are too many dreams on my bucket-list.
But for now, here are just a few I wish would happen in my lifetime.
- Maybe someday someone will tell all toothbrush owners to stop brushing so hard.
- And to brush more thoroughly because there are still way too much bacteria and food bits in your mouth after brushing with a manual toothbrush.
- I wish my owner would fix that leaky tap that keeps dripping
- Oh, and for goodness sake, I wish he’d squeeze the life out of that grumpy Toothpaste. I don’t know how much longer I can stand the negativity.
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