Everyone is familiar with Murphy's Law: "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong." There are all sorts of corollaries to this basic "law" and one to which I usually attend is the following: If there's rain in the forecast and you take an umbrella with you, it won't rain; but if you don't take the umbrella, it will rain.
With that principle in mind I went to the dentist today for my semi-annual check-up and cleaning. I took my appointment book along figuring that, just as having an umbrella would somehow prevent rain, having my calendar with me would prevent my being asked to return for more work. I was wrong.
I have to go back in a week to have some old fillings replaced so that food won't gather in the spaces that are now there. It's a preventive measure and by no means close to receiving the verdict that one needs a root canal done.
As always I went to the dentist prepared not only with my appointment book but also with an intention in mind. As I sit in the dentist's chair and have my teeth worked on I like to have a specific intention that I pray for, offering up the discomfort and pain. Today it was for the staff here at the national office of the Apostleship of Prayer. We have undergone some transition recently with the addition of a young Jesuit priest, Fr. Phil Hurley (who will work with youth and young adults), and the temporary departure of Joseph Rutchik (a young layman who does our YouTube videos and other media work and who recently had a heart valve replaced). Transitions are always difficult and prayers for healing from surgery are always welcome. So I combined those two intentions as I offered up my time in the chair today.
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