I rarely went to the doctor as a child as I have always been blessed with good health. The following is about my most memorable trip to the doctor's office when I was in elementary school. Every word is true! This ran in March of 2006.
When I was in fifth grade, my hair began falling out in clumps. My parents were at a loss and took me to a dermatologist in Lincoln to find out what was wrong. (There must not have been any dermatologists in my hometown of 6,000.) The doctor performed an examination and exiled me to the waiting room. He proceeded to castigate my folks for my condition. This is the conversation as recreated by my parents:
"What are you doing to that boy?"
Dumbfounded, my parents asked what he was talking about.
"That young man is terribly upset about something! Are you beating him?"
My parents denied the allegation.
"He must be maladjusted at school!"
Mom and Dad replied I made good grades, had plenty of friends, and participated in every sport available.
"What rules do you have for him that could be causing him this kind of anguish?"
The only rule they could think of was that I/we had to eat everything on our plates or we could not have dessert. They told him that I detested squash and liver.
"That's it. That's what is causing his hair to fall out!"
My parents were incredulous. It was so silly that it bordered on the absurd. But, to get him off their back (in my opinion), they agreed to drop the dessert addendum to our supper contract. Guess what? Immediately, my hair ceased its exodus and grew back in just like before.
I was blessed with terrific parents. For years, they traveled the country, putting on Marriage Encounter and Marriage Enrichment seminars. One point they consistently made was that they were imperfect in raising their children but did the best they could. Why did my hair fall out? I have no clue. Do I believe it had any connection with eating squash and liver? Absolutely not. I am sure it was purely coincidental. My parents felt the same way. But, they loved me enough to get to the bottom of the dilemma and were willing to go to expense and inconvenience to help their son. The Bible instructs parents to train their offspring and further warns fathers not to exasperate their children. (I am sure most of the exasperation came from my end!) Mom and Dad followed those guidelines to perfection even if their children were somewhat flawed. My folks knew more about raising kids than an unnamed dermatologist in Lincoln, Nebraska. But, I will never gripe about his cure for my scalp.
Applicable quote of the day:
"Sometimes, you like to let the hair do the talking!"
James Brown
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
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