A post inspired by a relatively recent visit to some denture professionals in Perth to get some cavities fixed and my dentures whitened. Shudder. And, yes, I knew these things before, but the correlation is fun and soothing to my dentist-fearing soul.
1. Improvement comes from pain. It may be physical pain or emotional pain or spiritual pain, but when it is over – after you have been through the refiner’s fire – you are closer than you were before to wisdom and charity and perfection.
2. Regular brushing and flossing are much better than fillings and root canals… or worse. Avoiding sin and maintaining a testimony is much better than the pain of repentance.
3. A little peer pressure can go a long way. At the end of the 6-month cleaning and check up, the dental assistant is oh so eager to schedule the next appointment. I always cave.
4. Sugar may be enjoyable for a time, but the long-term tooth decay it can lead to is really unpleasant. Nutritious carrots and spinach can strenghthen teeth. Likewise, the sweet urban legend passed as a true story in sacrament meeting can bring an emotional tear to the eye, but the richness of the scriptures and the gospel nourish the spirit in lasting way.
Tanya, you probably paid the dentist a tenth of your income, too, right?
Mark, I did indeed pay about that much. An excellent point.
I learned all that from reading Orson Scott Card’s fiction.
So I guess I don’t need to visit the dentist again, right?
😉
I learned a lot of things once when I was getting a root canal at the dentist. I opted to have the gas, and had many an epiphany whilst under the influence. Problem was, when I came out eager to relate all these new revelations to my wife, none of them made a lick of sense.
Ivan, it does indeed sound like you have a dentist-free future in store. Good luck with that 😉
Tossman, ah the gas. Good stuff. I’ve never had any good epiphanies whilst under its floaty goodness.
I can’t take the gas anymore – it makes me sick.
Mainly because I was under the influence of it, and then the dentist took his lunch break, came back and apparently forgot about me.
After I puked due to an overdose of the gas, I quickly found another dentist.
Tanya- I’d have to say it’s different each time for me (I’d had a lot of cavities in my day). The first time was really strange. I thought I was a cartoon character in a comic strip. Another time I thought I thought I could fly. It was only the last time that I thought I was a prophet, seer, and revelator.
One thing’s for sure though, no matter what crazy thoughts I’m having, I’m always very relaxed. Oh, so you’re drilling a hole thru my tooth? No problem. You just slipped and sliced my gum open? Okie dokie.
But I agree with your point- there are some gospel parallels (with dental hygeine, not laughing gas). I am dentistophobic to an extreme degree. And it’s only when I face that fear that I begin to feel better. Sin is like a toothache. You can’t really ignore it. Eventually it will hit the root and make you miserable. Best to try and prevent that, and when it happens, fix it promptly.
Tossman, you must be much more sensitive to the gas than me. The most it does to me is make me feel a bit floaty and lightheaded (which I enjoy, I admit), and it makes the shots hurt less and the novocaine work better than without it. That’s it.
But back to my original point. You are quite right that sin is like a toothache: prevention is so much easier, but taking care of it promptly if it happens is much less unpleasant.
Tossman reminded me of another parallel.
root canal = high council speaker
What I learned from the Dentist and the Gospel in reference to “Improvement comes from pain” : a little Novacain and Percocet sure makes improvement easier. (grin)
Hey, Mark IV, I resemble that remark!!!
That sounds like the life lessons I get from playing hearts on-line. Basically, you win some, you lose some.
I wouldn’t equate a high council speaker with the root canal. I’d equate the wait to get into the busy dentist with the high coucil speaker. No offense to any high councilmen, Geoff :).
On a serious threadjack, why is it the world over that High Councilors give boring talks 90% of the time? Is it part of the calling? Is it intentional? I’ve only had a few high councilors that were absolutely amazing, and I’ve never heard anyone else in the church make a positive statement. Why is that. I’ve even known a couple of guys who when speaking before becoming a high councilor who were really engaging, but then they became high councilors…
Actually, the high councilors who speak in my ward are usually pretty good….
The high councilor who speaks at the wards I am in is certainly quite good when I am speaking.
Great analogies! I have been putting off going to the Dentist far too long.
Why is it that root canals get such a bad rap? Hey, zip zap, the pulp is out, the tooth is dead, right? Root canals may not be a Celestial experience, but they’re not exactly Outer Darkness. Wearing dentures, on the other hand, now that’s gotta be Outer Darkness (without the gnashing of teeth, of course).