A dentist I can relate to

My mother really wanted to have someone look at her set of dentures, and being the kind of woman she is, she also wanted to try a new dentist. I had to call every dentist in town who had a Chinese-looking surname, and ask the receptionist whether he or she could speak Cantonese. If only it were as simple as looking through all the Wongs in the white pages.

We did find one; in fact one whose father used to be one of my mother's neighbours. The new dentist was cheerful and patient (perhaps knowing you can charge sixty bucks for fifteen minutes work will do that), and apparently was quite accustomed to dealing with the foibles of elderly Chinese people i.e. people who, decades ago, thought nothing of getting all of their own teeth replaced with falsies just because you could; people who would rather suffer gum disease followed by loss of teeth rather than pay for regular check-ups; people who will turn the simplest task into living hell for their offspring who has to be there to translate. The dentist knew which course of action would appeal to my mother the most, because it's what all his elderly Chinese patients prefer i.e. a quick and reasonably priced fix.

The way he talked about his dad and his elderly relatives, I felt "I can sooo relate to this". I could've stayed and shared elderly parent anecdotes with him all afternoon, except I wouldn't have been able to afford his time.

I was a bit grumpy when I realised I would have to drive over to my mum's in the morning in order to pick up her dentures and drop them off at the dentist's for fixing - she gets to eat properly tonight but tomorrow's lunch will have to be gummed. Then I got worried that the grumpiness was another sign that I'm turning into my mother, so I stopped.