On Flossing, Brushing and AHA Moments



This picture reminds me of an "aha" moment I had about 10 years ago sitting in a dental hygienist's chair. For the last few years I had been doing a cleaning three times a year (instead of two) because of plaque issues on my front teeth.. and I was glad that my plaque didn't seem as hard to clean since I had gone to more frequent cleaning.. the cleaning of my teeth had become a torturous experience replete with those nasty pick-like dental instruments and sometimes a bit of bleeding.

So I am sitting there getting my teeth cleaned by a new hygienist and she starts to quiz me about my dental hygiene routine.. hey.. where is my regular hygienist.. she doesn't ask me embarrassing questions. So I retreat into my Jedi persona and speak to her about how I brush all the time.. she interrupts me and asks sometime like "So how often do you floss?" I brush off her remarks and say something like "I try to floss regularly." She then says "If you would just floss every day you would not have to get your teeth cleaned so often."

I was busted and my ego was bruised a bit. I was wanting my old hygienist - where was she anyway? I mean who is this gal anyway? She didn't know me! I think I mumbled something back to her about "trying harder" - but I could not shake her advice.. she had spoken truth to me.. I had heard it before but for some reason I "heard it" this time.

The aftermath was that I began a simple regimen of flossing every day.. it just takes a few minutes.. and amazingly I went back to teeth cleaning twice a year.. and the cleaning came without pain.. the cleanings were amazingly quick and the hygienist usually told me how great my teeth looked.

Have you ever had an "aha" moment? Ever "hear" something that you had been told many times and for some reason believed it? I wonder if that was what Jesus was speaking to when he spoke about people having ears to hear? Not that He was a big believer in flossing.


5 comments:

  1. Thanks for the encouraging words on "flossing".

    It's one of those things that only takes a minute, but has to be a habit that you do like combing you hair..... I will try harder!!!!

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  2. I try to floss but I have never really got to grips with the technique!

    My "aha" moments are getting more frequent these days, as I realise more and more about living under and in the Grace of God

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  3. So where is the other hygienist?

    Yes, I've had lots of AHA moments but don't always pay attention to them :( I do however enjoy flossing!

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  4. This sounds like the same sorts of experiences I have at the dentist, although the Jedi mind tricks don't really work for me. I did hear a commercial recently for a dentist that doesn't bug you and only helps rather than criticizes - going to them may be my "Aha!" moment.

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  5. "As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is Floss"

    just sayin' :-)

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