The Toothbrush Incident

I write about the good times.. time to write about a time that was not so good.. and how I dealed with it and how God is awesome.

I like to change my tooth brush every 3 months. Simple eh? When I first came to my host family, I figured it was time to get a new one. They even gave me one. It was pink and soft and oh so lovely.

But three months passed and my dear toothbrush looked like it was shoved into my mouth every day and pushed around... it was. That plaque fighting machine was loosing speed... and I didn`t want my teeth to pay for it.

So finally... I got up the nerve to ask my host mom for another toothbrush. I don`t ask for much. Just a tooth brush.

She told me it would be better if I bought it myself.

Ok... I know this must have been an overreaction, a toothbrush right? But I cried. I cried into my pillow. Not long, not hard, but I felt homesick. I mean, my real mom would.

It was not the fact that I could not have a toothbrush.. it was the concept behind it. The thought. Host families... we are told they will treat us like family. They should. And my mom buys me my toothbrushes.

I am in no way trying to put down my host family. They are wonderful and I am greatful for them. I have no problem if they find this on the internet and read it. I mean.. they give me everything. What is wrong with saying no to a toothbrush? I am the one who was too sensitive.

But in my head were the thoughts... am I not worth it to them? I try to be the best host daughter. Going out of my way to help out how I can. Trying to not be a burden. What am I doing wrong that would make them not want to spend money for a toothbrush for me.

But I knew God was there... goodness yes.

And then I thought some more. Well.. my host parents do buy me lots of stuff. My host mom buys me bananas because she knows I love them. She bought me lots of stuff for my throat. And my very own bag of cough drops. They do care. And I shaped up a bit more.

My mind even drifted to how I hadn`t cried in forever, was doing great... and that I knew somehow God needed me to go through this. He would follow through. I would learn something through this.

And then I realized I still needed that toothbrush. But I was in a better mood, I did my mood shift there on my pillow and was back to normal soon. But that toothbrush. So I decided to totally turn it into a fun event. Something that I could enjoy. I would call it... "Maggie Goes To the Store and Buys the Most Amazing Toothbrush Ever."

Sounds good huh?

Anyways... I left my room when my host mother confronted me... toothbrush in hand. She asked if it would work. I must have looked pretty weird.. like she had given me the moon. But to me, it was the world. It was a toothbrush... for my very own. She cared!

And you know what?

It was even orange.