The Toothache

Is there a way to really prove the evidence of a painful moment?

Go tell somebody you have a toothache. What impression would that make upon them? If, heaven forfend, you were crushed underneath a vehicle, you're pain, broken bones, blood splattered, would leave undeniable evidence that you are hurting. But tell them that you have a toothache, and they shrug their shoulders. In their eyes, maybe you do, maybe you don't.

Well, my tooth hurts. My tooth has been hurting me, and my gums, since yesterday. But because it is the weekend, there's no dentist around. On the dentist's answering machine there's a message that if you are in a definite urgent emergency, go to the emergency room of your local hospital. Goodness! I would much rather go to a gypsy fortune teller, then to my hospital’s emergency room. I'd have faster service, better luck, and probably similar outcome.

So how to deal with pain. I mean pure, physical pain. An ache that reminds you not just that your mortal -- that's easy. An ache that reminds you that you can hurt at any time, and that in some ways you are very very small.

So Mrs. goes away for the weekend -- actually a week. And suddenly you're all alone. Oh, yes some of the children are around, but it is as if you are alone. They are in their own world, thinking and taking care of themselves. And if you dare to intrude, you will know fast enough where the border lies.

Nurse a pain all by yourself. Feel immersed in your own pain, and your own helplessness. Know, that no one feels your pain but yourself. And the momentary lip service comes and goes.

Enter on the scene, Oragel! A little tube of medication that numbs the teeth and the gums. A remarkable antidote, for just a few dollars. Why didn't I think of this before?! I buy it, I try it, and it works! Incredible! Suddenly the pain has diminished considerably. That huge mountain of a toothache shrinks into a truly tiny molehill. All with one little application.

So maybe that's what they were thinking after all. Hey man, why are you making a mountain out of a mole hill? It hurts? They are easy solutions. We have all been there, done that. Maybe you haven't, so you're panicking. But it's only because you're backward, ignorant, and uninformed. One little visit to the pharmacy and you can set the world right again.

And the whole time I was complaining about my toothache. Maybe that's why I was passed over gently, politely or basically ignored. The catastrophe existed only in my mind. Others did not feel my pain, nor did they feel my concern and worry.

Sometimes, it is so hard to live with myself. What a struggle. Toothaches.