Personal Narrative: How Dentist Changed My Life

I was 9 when I saw the work of the dentist for the first time. Then, “Dentist” was just a word, a character on TV, and a concept with no meaning. At my new boarding school, there were students with metal in their mouths, a sign of affluence, because no average person could afford the regular dental visits and the replacement of caps broken by hard candy and careless dining. A girl in my class with teeth jutting out at almost 45°, rumored to be caused by her endless chatter returned with metal in her mouth, and the gaps between her teeth start to close. Her rare smile became generous, the name-calling lost steam and the word “Dentist” secured some meaning it had previously lacked. A dentist changed her life, but the boy next to me still hid his crooked teeth. When I was 13, my aunt returned with a swollen jaw and 3 molars less after weeks of swishing around a salt wash in her mouth in hopes that it would take …show more content…
This desire was manifested in farming with the World Hunger Relief, constructing houses with the Restore Waco Habitat for Humanity and volunteering with the Special Olympics and the Miracle league of Frisco because I have seen firsthand in my younger brother the limitations special needs individuals encounter when performing certain tasks. Volunteering had shown me numerous ways to give back but my love for understanding scientific concepts, working with my hands and practicing culinary arts convinced me that dentistry is a combination of the things I love. Whether it was carving intricate designs into the dried backs of calabash gourds from a young age, crocheting, or working with the multifarious and sometimes limited tools in my kitchen to bring to life the artful recipes in my head, I saw similarities. The satisfaction coursing through me when I lay eyes on the finished product has always been a motivator, one that will fuel my desired dental