To Arms!

I went to the dentist the other day, and suffice it to say that it had been too long since my last visit. We need not dwell on precisely how long. The point is that it was a trying experience, which doesn't actually distinguish it very much from past visits that have been on a more frequent basis. At any rate, there was a lot of probing of my mouth with rather imposing implements. It was well-intentioned, but tell that to a person's impulses.

My tongue is a rather noble organ. Without regard for its own safety, it again and again plunged into danger in hopes of warding off the aforementioned invaders. Even against my will, disregarding orders, my tongue put itself in between my sensitive teeth and everything ranging from pointy metal tools to sophisticated cavity-sensing electronic probes. It was a truly selfless, gallant series of sacrifices by the tongue that has already done so much.

Of course, those sacrifices were all really in vain. The tongue is, if anything, at least as vulnerable as the very teeth it sought to lay its life down for. The whirring devices that were themselves serving me nobly would have gone right through my tongue if it had genuinely clashed with them. In a way, that would have been a much worse fate than the pain whose anticipating sent the tongue into action. Obviously rationality is not what the tongue does.

Still, it was appreciated. That impulse just has to be better channeled. I am always in need of defenders from outside enemies, and the tongue is well placed to serve in that capacity. It just needs to learn better judgement and discipline. Clearly a more hands-on approach from me is necessary to instill in the tongue an appropriate set of skills. I only wish that I had the time and the energy to see that done. Regrettably, the tongue is on its own.