The Magic Juice and the Art of Tooth Extraction

When I read the story " Ay! May Bukbok ang Ngipin ni Ani! (Ani has a bad tooth) to Mabie, she was scheduled to go to the dentist that afternoon. So I had to be very careful in pointing out several facts that the story reveals about dentists and the experience of having ones teeth extracted. It was good that she was very interested with the story. But to be honest, when she browsed the pages of the book, she told me that I'll be tired reading that since it was too long (at least for her). I told her that even thought I had just recovered from sore throat, I can manage to finish reading the story aloud. She was then eager to listen to the story and she was so curious about the part when the dentist was trying to explain how he will pull out Ani's teeth, as if it will be a delightful experience. Mabie saw the drawing of the injection so she became anxious about her scheduled appointment with the dentist. She asked if what the story says about the bad tooth being caused to sleep by the magic juice (aka anaesthesia) was true. Of course, I had to keep in mind that it is not proper for me to give an explanation that will change the schema of Mabie (about the injection and the bad tooth) in a negative way. She really had to go to the dentist and the story that I read to her should encourage her not to be afraid of having her teeth extracted. Fortunately, the writer of the book was sensitive and creative to explain medical processes in such an imaginative way.