Dentist Visit

Ugh.  Late late late!

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Today I watched an elderly man accompany his frail, equally elderly wife to the dentist office.  He sat her down on the over-stuffed couches tenderly and went to the receptionist's desk to check them in.  He inquired several times about the nature of the appointment - she had a broken tooth that was bothering her and was this appointment just a cleaning?  The receptionist assured him that both would be taken care of.  When he sat down next to her, he explained what would happen.  "But I'm confused," she said.  "Me too, but it will be okay," he assured her.

They sat there, quietly observing the people going in and out of the office for some time.  "Are they late?" she asked.  "No, we're early," he said.  "About five more minutes."  "Oh, okay," she sighed.  He gently held her hand.

When the hygienist called them up, he stood and turned to help his wife up.  "She has a little trouble walking," he told the hygienist.  "Oh, does she need a wheelchair?"  "No, that won't be necessary, it's just a little trouble."  He took great care in making sure that his wife had a good hold on his arm as she shuffled over to the desk.  "She'll take you now," he told her, "It's going to be just fine."  His concerned look said otherwise and the hygienist seemed to notice.  "You could come back with us.  We're just in the first room."  "I think I will," he said, nodding. As they headed out of the waiting room, he began "It's just that she has a tooth that really needs looking at and we weren't sure if this was just a cleaning..."

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This man's gentleness and deep care for his wife just struck me as so tender.  It was a simple and arguably ordinary thing to witness but it filled my heart to see that little bit of their love story.  And it helped me hope for my own.