Plaster teeth splay
unhinged on stainless steel,
in gypsum white,
brittle as leached bone
with yawning attitudes.
Or metal braced
and lockjaw seized
with regimental bites,
in grinning rows,
from which wax tongues protrude.
Vanity sways
the fragile self-esteem,
ill-defined,
of customers prone
to a fear of peer review.
Therapists display
impeccable teeth,
to advertise
by example shown,
a standard to pursue.
Technicians appraise
with detached ease
stony mouths in lines,
their owners unknown.
Empathy rarely intrudes.
Except some days,
a misshapen mouth pleads
and technicians catch sight,
detachment flown,
of misfortune in plain view.
One of those days
reveals a task which defeats
the orthodontist's mind,
in distorted jawbones,
pinched and skewed.
But the patient's undismayed;
says all she needs
is a tooth realigned
and the technician knows,
that much, they can do.