A Tooth Ache in the Mara

We live in a beautiful corner of God's World. The green grass, the hot sun, the cool breezes, lofty peaks with grand vistas, animals of every shape and description. We hear the roars of lions, the laughter of a hyena getting a meal, the songs of the Maasai, the trumpet of the elephants. The soft clanging of the cowbells, announcing the sunset, as long lines of the trusty creatures wander by on their way home. You can drive through the Mara and even enjoy the different smells. I can smell the sharp acid odor of a campfire in the cool morning air, and the dust has a beautiful smell as the raindrops hit the parched and thirsty ground with large thumps.

Of course all this is missed if you have a tooth ache. What does a person in Sekenani do who has a tooth ache? Do you really want to know??? Okay. The first thing you have to realize is that an African bush dentist is slightly different than an American dentist. The dentist office is usually on a porch or under a tree. You either get a plastic chair or a wood stool depending on if your dentist is doing well with his business of not. Either way there is only one procedure, you can have the tooth pulled or.... you can have the tooth pulled. His tools for this job are very basic, he has a pair of pliers and a bottle of whiskey for you and him both, and for sterilization. About half the time, you will need to go to the doctor afterward as there is a piece of root left in there, that starts to get infected and has to work its way out.

With this as the background, you can imagine our surprise and joy to hear that we had a real dentist coming to our neck of the bush and opening his practice. I have to admit that I didn't have high hopes. Now looking back, I feel totally embarrassed. Ray is a Dentist from Seattle WA and has been doing Medical / Dental safaris for almost thirty years. On Jan 9th 2009 he opened the Safari Dentist Office here in the Mara and hopes to work here full time. This is quite a change, and it has us very busy as we are taking friends and family over to have their teeth checked. The pictures are of Unis and her Mom. Unis is a young lady from our church that was looking for work. She had finished High School and a short school on public health. She is now studying and working as a dental assistant. Her mother Agnes needed a root canal. It has been a blessing to both of them. Unis loves her new work and is excited over all the new things that she is learning. God is so good. If you would like to visit Ray's website, click on "the safari Dentist" link on the right hand side.