wonders of children

Children is an example of perfection. Why ? because u can never go wrong with them. Every act, every gesture..there just seem to be no ‘ugliness’..only purity and innocence. Emm..well, in majority of them. Some kids can be really out of control and menacing…

Tadi sesi paeds. One thing that makes paeds session different from other clinics, ialah ..'bising dan riuh’. With laughter.. ( though very rarely..) and tears, screams and shouts..running here and there..that smtmes makes me eyeing them in worriness, as they are playing around dental units which contain handpieces and sharp instruments, that might accidentally cause injury to them. But..children, after a few… “jgn adik,..jgn main dekat situ, bahaya !”, I turned away for split of seconds, and they are back in action.

Heh…cute they may be, but need a huge amount of patience and ‘smiling-through-gritted-teeth’ as we are struggling to keep them still on the dental chair. One thing we are taught regarding treating children is that, they have short attention span. So..whatever it is that we need to do, make it fast during their ‘obedient’ minutes . After 45 mins, they will start to move around restlessly, keep moving their head, playfully closing their mouth when our hands are still working furiously in it. This is usually in the 3-6 years old, which make it even harder for you to be mad at them. Their parents will be sitting nearby, and each time their child refuse to stay still or starting to act naughty, the fathers would open their eyes wide, which most of the time manage to keep them quiet again.

Some are very talkative and full of curiousity, ‘petah’ kata org Melayu. Some say it’s a sign that the child is bright. The first few questions are entertained willingly, but as they start to bombard us endlessly with never-ending questions like..“ Apa tu.. ?” or “ kenapa buat ni, untuk apa ni.?”, esp when we have fillings to do in their mouth and we can’t do it if they are still happily chattering away, we began to lose our patience and motherly way. No wonder…mothers are the most patient human being in the entire world. They have enough practise while bringing their kids up.

Some are very well-behaved. Too good for a kid, I think..( as I was not like that before..hehe..). Some are terrible, seriously. It’s whether they refuse to open their mouth, or when they finally did, they are howling, along with tears streaming their cheeks., esp when it’s extraction. Some are overly hyperactive, like my partner’s patient today, a 6 year-old girl. One minute we left her, we found her standing on the dental chair, with her 3-year old brother running around the place. I glanced at her mother, who could only watch, too tired to chase her two ‘not-listening’ child. I looked at my partner, who was shaking her head, using her last strand of patience and energy to control the situation. But, most of the kids ive seen so far, are quiet and timid, sitting passively on the chair. When asked, they would shyly grin, and look at their mothers. They barely speak a word, too scared maybe.

But..no matter how naughty, how timid or active, they are children. Wonderful children. After treatment, we would give them stickers, and they would perk up at the sight of it. Smtmes, we blow air into a glove and make balloons out of it, and they would be very happy and excited. Hmmm..kids…the way they look at you, with that huge eyes, ull melt like ice. Toddlers..especially..hmm..

Agaknya,….brp tahun kena penjara kalau culik ‘patient cute’ td..? Cute sgt…terbyg2 pulak muka dia..( sigh)..