My Tooth Fairy Tale by Sophia

My Tooth Fairy Tale by Sophia - February 2024 Scholarship Essay

“A Tooth Fairy Tale”, by Megan Langford has been my favorite book since my first day of kindergarten. Sitting down at snack time with my pretzels, one of my front two bottom teeth fell onto the napkin in front of me. At first glance, I was immediately intrigued and showed every person in my class. Once I returned home, my mom wrote down the date, and “first day of kindergarten” on the spot labeled “#1” in the book. From that day, every time I had lost a tooth I would immediately write it down on the last page of my book. This book was constantly on my bedside table, or somewhere nearby. Even though I had read through the story many times, I liked to imagine when I would lose my next tooth.
Since everyone else in kindergarten and elementary school was also losing teeth, I wanted to help them. They would come up to me in school with a wiggly tooth, and with no hesitation, I would pull it out. Afterward, my mom would often receive a “Thank you” text from the parent of that child. “Maybe one day she’ll be my dentist!” they’d joke to my mom, as honestly, they were just happy I had removed their child’s tooth that they refused to pull on their own.
Even though it was a funny joke then, the interest in the profession never slipped my mind, even at the age of 6 or 7. This led me to the present day. I am a junior in high school, currently in honors chemistry and AP biology, so I can learn to pursue my dream of becoming a biology major on a pre-dental track. Biology is a subject that I have always been interested in and eager to learn about. Away from school life, I additionally have over 200 hours of clinical experience at Electric City Dentistry. I am extremely grateful for this job opportunity as it has allowed me to work with 7 of the most amazing doctors in my area. I have assisted with many procedures, such as root canals, fillings, and extractions. Additionally, I have watched as the doctors and anesthesiologists have performed sedation for some larger surgeries. Sometimes when I am waiting for the doctor, I talk to the patients about why I love biology and dentistry. I tell them about how I documented every tooth I lost, and how I even pulled out some of my classmate's baby teeth. The frequent response is, “Well don’t pull any of my teeth out!” and they laugh. I love the patient interaction and watching the doctors make people feel more confident about themselves. Throughout this experience, I have learned that dentistry is the path I want to follow as I study biology to reach that goal.
All things considered, no matter the number of words, nothing can express my interest, ambition, and dedication to pursuing biology with a pre-dental track. Biology is truly an amazing major, as it can lead to so many different professions. Therefore, I am so thankful I have had experiences throughout my adolescence that have led me to figure out the specifics of the major I want. Without the book “A Tooth Fairy Tale”, I wouldn’t have the documentation of my lost teeth in my terrible, 8-year-old handwriting. Even though it seems silly, this story will motivate me to do great in school and pursue this rigorous major, making my kindergarten self proud.