The "Hey, That's One Funny Tooth!" Story

 It was an ordinary day.  Brushing my teeth in the morning after an early shower.   I began today's story as I did, since I will next tell you about a story I recently read titled "I Found My Smile At 42" which has to do with teeth.  The story was about a woman who grew up in a family that was poor and couldn't afford the braces for her teeth that she always wished she could have had.  Every morning when she brushed her teeth, there it was!  A high protruding cuspid that caused laughs and pointing at her teeth.  It was a long pointy tooth just off center, aka an eye tooth, canine or, as kids liked to tease, a fang!  The high protruding cuspid looked like a fang.  And it came just at the wrong time...in Jr. High; today's  Middle School.  The cost of braces was prohibited for her family so she had to learn to smile without opening her mouth.  There is more to that story, but at this point in my story, I have to ask if that might have happened to you as a child.  It did for me!  And, I was lucky enough that the other kids throughout my time in public schools didn't tease me about the lower middle tooth that stuck out from the rest.  Over time I learned how to smile, even laugh, without having to show my bottom row of teeth.  Actually, to this day, the tooth is still the same.  I think...since I never look at it anymore.  As far as the girl in my story, she finally did something about her tooth, but not until her children were grown and she could afford to have it done.  Finally, at the age of 42 she was fitted with a full set of the latest clear, plastic braces.  She wasn't sure what to expect when she went back to work the next day, but to her amazement, the people at work, as well as everywhere she went, were amazed that someone her age would do such a thing.  The only drawback was the pain she had to endure for some time due to the braces.  But, when the pain wore off, she was a totally different woman, unafraid to laugh for the first time in her life.  Now, after reading the story, I took a look at my tooth in the mirror and asked myself...is this something I should do?  Took me all but a few seconds to decide!  Hey, I've lived with the tooth all my life.  I've laughed and laughed and laughed many times over and not a single person ever mentioned the tooth to me.  My wife has never said a word to me.  Over the span of my lifetime I have been able to smile and laugh without showing the row of teeth on the bottom of my mouth.  How do I know this?  Well, I have stood in front of a mirror many times and practiced laughing and smiling so that you don't see the bottom row of teeth.  For those that have known me for years and years, such as my wife and children as well as my best friends, I'm sure they probably have seen the tooth in question, but no one has ever mentioned it.  Now, as soon as I post this, everyone will want to see "the tooth."  I just know they will.  And then we will all laugh about it.  My plans for when I die are to be cremated...you know, dust to dust, ashes to ashes and all that crap; therefore no one will be looking and laughing at my tooth while I lay in a coffin.  And, if you're wondering why I didn't include a photo of it in this story...well, go ahead and laugh all you want.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.