Recent courses

I recently took two excellent courses.  One was on making implant dentistry as predictable and successful as possible.  The second was on implant dentistry with an emphasis on improving aesthetics.  Many thanks to periodontist Scott Garrison for bringing in the speaker on implant aesthetics.  I picked up several good “pearls of wisdom” thanks to you, Scott.

As Good as Gold

The country went off the gold standard years ago, so gold no longer backs the value of our currency.  However, our culture hasn’t forgotten about gold---either its monetary value or its symbolism as something of great value.

The streets of heaven have been described as being paved with gold.  We aspire to live in a golden age which would only be possible if everyone lived the Golden Rule:  “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Alchemists discovered centuries ago that if you held a block of gold against a block of silver, the interaction between the two metals would cause flecks of gold to bury themselves in the block of silver.

One can think of this process in connection with everyday human associations.  As we share a handshake, give a cheerful greeting, provide a service, or pass on an encouraging word, we pick up flecks  of wisdom and positive influence that put us back on the gold standard.

When a survey was taken to determine what people thought the Golden Rule was, the most common response was, “The one who has the gold makes the rules.”  According to that same survey, only 50% of Americans know what the Golden Rule is.  Apparently, we have not been repeating that message enough for people to learn it.

The best way to get the message across is by the way we live.  We can keep exchanging those precious gold flecks and increasing our value to the world in which we live.  Then we will surely be “as good as gold,” and our actions will serve as a model to encourage others.

Our latest $50 winners

Every month we have a drawing for a $50 office credit.  We do this to thank our patients who make appointments that begin between 11 AM and 3 PM.   By scheduling during a less popular time period you help our office run more efficiently, so we enter you in our drawing.  Congratulations to Jeanette Bloomfield for winning the November drawing and  to December winner Dave Kramer.