Funny Story!

Another good story found in "Chicken Soup for the Soul."

The Secret

As a student in dental school, it often seemed to me the main focus was on fulfilling requirements necessary for graduation. We had to complete a certain number of bridges, crowns, root canals, amalgams, composites, dentures, etc. to qualify. One of the requirements was to complete restorations on children in the pediatric clinic. For me, it was hard enough to satisfactorily complete a filling on an adult, let alone a squirmy child.

One particular afternoon, I had to complete a filling on a rather rambunctious six-year-old. I'd worked on him before and had acheived marginal success in gaining his cooperation. It goes without saying that I was probably more apprehensive than he was about his appointment.

I was surprised when I went to the waiting area to find a sedate, almost depressed, young man. As I sat him in the dental chair , I inquired as to why he was so sad. He informed me he had lost a footrace at school- to a GIRL! While I comforted him on his courages attempt to race- and not to mention the fact that he had lost- I noticed he had his left shoe on his right foot and his right shoe on his left foot. Not to pass up an opportunity, I promised to tell him a "secret" at the end of the appointment on how he could run faster if we finished the filling without a lot of fuss. Anticipating some miraculous words of advice, he promised to cooperate.

We must have finished in record time. The boy was a perfect oatient and I was delighted at what we were able to accomplish. Glowing in my performance, I temorarily forgot about the "secret." My patient, however was not about to forget. Eyes full of hope, he reminded me of my promise to tell him how he could run faster.

I leaned over the boy with my mouth close to his right ear and, in hushed tones, told him the secret: "You have your shoes on the wrong feet!"

Within seconds, disappointment and sadness returned to his face. "Whats wrong?" I asked.

In a dejected voice that I'll never forget, he answered, "But these are the only feet I have!"

-Gary E. Heyamoto, DDS, FAGD