​The Teeth You Want To Keep

Parents have much in common in the care of children, including the need to teach their children healthful habits. Among those habits is brushing teeth regularly, a task that many children resist doing for reasons like the taste of toothpaste, the time involved, and the effort. When one of my children was young and had a cavalier attitude about the brushing ritual, I said, “Here’s an idea. Just brush the teeth you want to keep.”
 
Maybe that advice has corollaries. “Just exercise the body parts you want to stay healthy.” “Just change the oil in the car you want to keep.” Those pearlies in your mouth have no other place to go for care and no other place to serve as masticators. Your teeth will be your teeth and no one else’s teeth. So, here’s another corollary: “Just care for the people on your planet. You’ll lessen the chance that any of them go bad.”