The Dreaded Dentist

The other day a huge miracle happened to me. Like, humungus. Here’s the story. In general, I find it hard to keep up with all of my kids’ needs, from helping them with homework to remembering to cut their toenails before they start curling over the ends of their toes. There have been times (once or twice) that I’ve actually gone so long without having cut some of my kids’ toenails, that they really did start to curl down. Okay, not exactly around the end of their toes, but far enough for me to be unable to hold back my semi-disgusted reaction. Poor kids. As if it were their fault. Bad mama!

I have no idea why I just told you that. Some things are better kept secret, no? Right. So a few months ago I realized that it had been a while since I took the kids for their bi-annual checkup and teeth cleaning. Then, I remembered and forgot again like a hundred more times. Finally, I remembered that I actually had to make an appointment if I wanted the kids to see the dentist.

Thank G-d, the dentist gives you a reminder call the day before. If not, there was for sure no way I would have remembered which kids to take when. Because you know there’s no way I’m going to punish myself by bringing five kids to the dentist at the same time.

Everything was great, until the dentist told me that my four-year-old, Nachman, needed a filling. Well, I just keep making myself sound more negligent by the minute, don’t I? Wonderful. Oh, just as a side note, it’s sad but true that bringing a four-year-old for fillings is way too common in Israel. I don’t know why, but the level of dental health is al hapanim (literally “on the face.”) Figuratively, that means it stinks. I’m not sure what that has to do with “on the face,” but like I’ve said before, many things here just don’t make sense.

For a few days, I forgot about it. Then I found the printout of Nachman’s appointment in the sock drawer, and wondered how on Earth it got there. Once I realized that his appointment was only a few days away, I started to get nervous. I remember getting fillings, cleanings, root canals, and even many extractions as a kid, and I don’t exactly have fond memories of the dentist. I can even remember that sickening smell of whatever it is when I walked in. What was that smell, really? Fluoride?

Then, the guilt set in. It was totally my, er, I mean my husband’s, fault that Nachman had a cavity in the first place. After all, it’s my, I mean my husband’s, responsibility to brush his teeth every day. So the fact that I had failed my responsibility plus the fact that now Nachman had to pay for my neglect (OMG, I’m about to delete this entire article) made me feel extra guilty. And Jewish. Because you know that Jews and guilt go hand in hand – just like Jews and food (especially Chinese food,) Jews and free stuff, Jews and bargaining, etc.

I decided that I felt so bad about being the reason that Nachman would have to suffer, that I started to do teshuva for it. I asked Hashem to have mercy on my son, as it’s not his fault that I can’t keep up with everything. After all, I’m one person taking care of seven! How much can one person do without help?

I also asked Hashem to make the visit go as quickly and smoothly as possible. Was it too much to ask Him to make sure that Nachman didn’t cry from pain or get traumatized? Why not. So I asked for that, too. I also envisioned the entire visit, picturing Nachman sitting calmly in the chair and letting the dentist do his work without any crying, complaining, or attempts to strangle the dentist and his little drill.

Well, you are not going to believe it (or maybe you will,) but that is exactly what happened! First, I asked the dentist to load Nachman up on nitrous oxide, and to give me a hit, too. Then, I told him I didn’t want a mercury filling. He said no problem for both. I couldn’t believe what was happening before my eyes. Nachman was calm, only fussed a little at the very beginning, and let the dentist do his work in what felt like only five minutes! Miracle of miracles!

This incident showed me that Hashem is listening to our prayers, He wants to help us, and He wants us to know that He’s taking care of us. It also showed me the power of teshuva and talking to Hashem.

Asking Hashem for help is paramount to achieving your goals, whatever they may be. It makes the process so much more pleasant, and you also get to witness Divine intervention in action.

As we were getting ready to leave, I asked the dentist if I could take the machine of nitrous oxide home, and he said, “Sure, for 20,000 shekel!” Thanks, but I’ll stick with my ashwagandha, doc.