It's time for the dentist again. You always hate going there. Last time, you had a root canal, and just the sound of drilling almost drove you crazy.
But now you're back for your appointment and a little wary.
"Open please."
says your dentist.
"So, how's your new job coming along?"
You try to tell him that you've been working there for three months so it's not really all that new anymore, but it ends up sounding like this:
"I een rkeen er or ee on o i o eall al a ew aneor,"
He nods understandingly.
"Well, you know what I mean. Everything's good though?"
"eh-he"
"Well that's good. It looks like I'm finding a lot of plaque here between your gums. You know, you could get gum disease. Have you flossed lately?"
"I oppo o oss?"
"Well of course you are."
He stops picking your teeth with the metal thingy.
"Why would you think you weren't supposed to?"
You clear your throat now that you can talk.
"Well. You never told me to floss last time, so I didn't think I had to."
"WHAT!"
Your dentist pulls out the air suction thingy that he uses to clear the goop out of your mouth. He puts it up to your neck.
"Now I want you to listen very closely. Last visit, I reminded you to floss."
"No you didn-"
"I said I TOLD YOU TO FLOSS! Okay? Look, if word gets out that I forgot to remind you to floss, then I could get hit with malpractice suits, lose my job, and become the laughing stock of all other dentists. I'm not going to let that happen, so unless you want me to give you fake hickeys and ruin your marriage, I suggest you listen to me."
"Okay, okay!"
you say.
"Just finish the job and I promise I won't say anything."
He quietly and moodily cleans your teeth, puts on the fluoride, flosses you, and then sends you on your way. You pay your bill, set up an appointment in three months and walk out the door. About half way out to the car, you realize that he forgot to tell you to floss again. You decide that you aren't going to tell him, but you aren't going to floss, either.
Now you know.
Oh, even if the dentist forgot to tell you to floss daily, you should still continue flossing. You know what you should do and that's half the battle. You should also do what you know. It's about discipline, after all.
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