A Tale of Troublesome Teeth

This story is a figment of my imagination.  I’m hoping it is far from accurate…..!

I flew to far-flung foreign skies to get my teeth put right.
I’d found a good package deal on Google for the treatment and the flight.
My teeth were yellow and crooked but nothing else wrong, you know –
I only wanted them straightened and whitened. I wanted them to glow.

Then I could hold my head up high for selfies and wedding shoots.
My imperfect smile, no longer subject to derisive jeers and hoots,
At a fraction of my Dentist’s costs and no waiting for more than a year.
Checking my bank balance and courage, I packed up all of my gear.

I arrived at my destination, but not quite what I’d had in mind, as
I was bidden to a grubby, worn-out reclining chair. ‘Relax’, she said ‘Unwind’.
She wore no mask or surgical gloves. No Certificates of her training, saying
‘No one’s complained about me yet’. My confidence was waning.

She said she’d owned a Beauty Salon – eyelash extensions, nail art
And after a short, online Dentistry course she was ‘qualified’ to start.
With my mouth still wide open I gulped down a nervous swallow.
I had to think quick. Was I prepared for what surely was to follow?

I slithered off the grubby chair while her back was turned.
I realised, in the nick of time that my lesson had been learned.
I bolted for the nearest door, tripping over a rat as I went.
This wasn’t what I’d envisaged. It wasn’t what was meant.

Safely back home, I looked at my teeth and realised how close I’d come to
Risking my health for vanity’s sake. How could I have been so dumb?
Should my gnashers offend you, just find out what’s beneath.
You can’t tell a book by its cover. THERE’S MORE TO ME THAN MY TEETH.