The Root of the Matter

D.J. lost his first tooth, finally! A few weeks ago, he came to me and said that he had a loose tooth. After opening wide and showing me his pride and joy, I saw that his permanent tooth was breaking in from behind. A trip to Dr. B - our dentist- was needed.

Dr. B's assistants numbed his gums with a topical paste followed by a few shots. We waited for it to take effect, laughing as his plucked at his lips. Dr. B came in and asked how he was doing.

"Is your mouth all tingly?"

"Uh-huh, I didn't like the shots though," still plucking at his bottom lip.

"That's how we make it numb."

"I know how to make your legs go numb." D.J. sat up a little straighter in the chair, Dr. B. wasn't the only one who knew something about the subject.

"How's that?" Dr. B. gathered some supplies from the cabinet.

"Sit on the toilet a really, really long time." He said with conviction like expert with experience.

I nearly died trying not to laugh; trying not to cry. Dr. B. happens to be a family friend as well so I would have to live with the embarrassment longer than the semi-annual, 30mn. trip to the office.

"Yeah, I know about that." Dr. B. said without missing a beat, "That happened to my brother once, he had to fall of the toilet because his legs wouldn't work."

And that was the beginning of a conversation I'll never forget.

A few minutes and a few more shots later, D.J.'s monster tooth was out. The front root had not absorbed and made it virtually impossible to fall out on it's own. The Tooth Fairy was extra nice, $1.25.

More proof organized chaos.