The Unexpected Lesson of Patience
But interestingly, it didn’t end there. Instead of wasting the whole day, I ended up spending most of my time waiting for my dental filling appointment. Honestly, is there anyone who can patiently wait for two hours just to deal with that kind of pain?
I am a BPJS user, or as we kindly call it, the free insurance provided by the government. My appointment had actually been scheduled a week earlier, and I specifically chose a doctor I already knew. She’s always been a very kind person, with a clear and descriptive way of answering questions — even when my questions were about topics that seemed really common. My appointment was set for 4 p.m., and they even sent me the exact confirmation on the day itself.
As usual, I like to arrive early, so I left home around 3:30 p.m. I rode my old motorcycle, which has several problems but still holds a lot of meaning for my family. The evening weather was cloudy, as it often is, but the clinic wasn’t far — only about five minutes away. After arriving safely, I parked the motorcycle and didn’t forget to take the parking coupon. The payment for motorcycles is only 2.000 rupiah, I’m not sure about the fee for other vehicles. Walking into the clinic, I felt confident that I would get the first spot in line.
I was stunned and a bit shocked after I confirmed my name and heard that my queue number was the fifth one. Did I really hear that correctly? Was something wrong with my ears? Did I check the time properly? I know, I was probably being a little dramatic in my reaction, but it honestly caught me off guard. I went upstairs, silently hoping the patients before me wouldn’t take too long. Around me were several children with their parents — three whole families sitting and waiting. The room felt noisy and crowded, nothing like what I had expected. Usually, when I came for an appointment, it was quiet — sometimes I was even the only patient there, enjoying every empty chair in the waiting room before being called in immediately. But that day was completely different. There were still a few minutes left before the doctor would arrive and prepare for the “execution” of our teeth, and in that moment, I realized this was going to be a very different kind of wait.
My small circle of activities felt endless — scrolling through social media, checking WhatsApp, reading random blogs — yet the time refused to move forward. At some point, I dozed off and ended up sleeping for about an hour in the waiting chair. I shifted positions constantly: resting my head against the wall, curling up with my forehead on my knees and arms crossed, or simply leaning back and forcing myself to get comfortable on that stiff, ordinary clinic chair.
In between, I drifted into moments of just staring blankly at nothing, then walking to the bathroom, watching the staff go up and down the stairs, and noticing children running around, playing with the chairs until they trembled beneath their small hands. The chaos made me feel both exhausted and strangely defeated. Finally — after what felt like an eternity — I heard my number being called.
The exaggeration ended. I went in to have a filling on my upper right fifth tooth. As the procedure began, the doctor reminded me not to close my mouth while she was still working. Curious, I asked her why. She kindly explained that saliva contains bacteria, and if it entered the tooth during the filling process, it could cause further contamination. Her explanation was simple yet clear, and it immediately made sense to me — you might have wondered the same thing too.
I left the clinic with three more teeth that still need to be filled, but those will have to wait until next week — since we can only visit the dentist once a week. So, I’ll be back again soon and…
see you here for a minute every day!
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