I Can Do It, It’ll Be Hard
By DR. JOHN F. MILLER DDS - SMILE MONTANA
Happy New Year everyone and welcome to 2025. Anytime a year ends with zero or five it seems more significant, more important. And of all the "five" years in a century none are more momentous than the 25 and the 75...which are tied at the top. So, it's a big deal. A quarter century since Y2K. A quarter century of adulthood for me as I was 18 when the new millennium rolled into town.
It feels terrifyingly fast and punishingly long at the same time. I could remember my Y2K New Year's Eve party like it was yesterday while ringing in this new year with my wife of 20 years and our four children, one of which is an adult herself attending college. Mind Blown. As I'm sure most of you can relate.
A few months back in this same publication I discussed the amazing advancements that I have seen in my profession during my short 15-year career as a dentist. It would seem I wrote that with little foresight as a 25-year retrospective of the technique and technological advancements of modern dentistry would have had a nice ring to it. Oh well. Go back one or two issues and it will read the same.
I will tell you something that has become more and more obvious to me over the last 25 years, and that is how awesome of a country we live in. The United States of America. The word tossed around the most when talking about what we are all about in the USA is freedom. Isn't it amazing to be free? Talk to someone new to this country and see what they say about it. They love it. I'm married to one.
This freedom is directly responsible for the USA's most famous product: The Dream y'all! The American Dream simplified says you can become whatever you want. Emphasis on the word can. It's not, "you will become whatever you want," it's "you can." That little dinky 3 letter word holds within it miles and years and smiles and tears (honestly pretty cool album title...feel free Taylor Swift, take it). Within this little word lies the rub. The "can" is hard.
Speaking of hard, while also considering cool things that I've seen in this first quarter of the 21st century, reminds me of this list I've seen many times on social media. This list goes as follows and obviously I needed to google it and copy and paste it:
CHOOSE YOUR HARD
Marriage is hard. Divorce is hard. Choose your hard.
Obesity is hard. Being fit is hard. Choose your hard.
Being in debt is hard. Being financially disciplined is hard. Choose your hard.
Communication is hard. Not communicating is hard. Choose your hard.
Life will never be easy. It will always be hard. But we can choose our hard. Pick wisely.
-Marcus Taylor
This freedom is directly responsible for the USA's most famous product: The Dream y'all! The American Dream simplified says you can become whatever you want. Emphasis on the word can. It's not, "you will become whatever you want," it's "you can."
I do like its message and feel like it's mostly true. I will state the obvious that everyone has other factors going on in life that make things harder or easier...this is just a generalization. Folks, I might tie this into dentistry or I might run out of space. Keep reading to find out. Twenty-five years ago, my life was way easier. That is to say my life is harder right now, but soooo much better. Based on the above this is due to me being able to successfully move my needle further from the negative "hard" things and closer to the "positive" hard things. I do need help in the communication department because I'm terrible at communicating, and it's indeed hard.
American Dream. Twenty-five years ago, I "wanted" to become a Dentist. Could I? Of course, the "can" is there for all of us. But the "can" I was facing down was long. Eight years at minimum. The "can" was hard. I needed to achieve straight A's through my undergraduate years, be in the 90th percentile on my dental entrance exam, successfully complete the rigorous requirements of dental school, and then navigate the hardest part of them all, being a successful dentist and business owner.
If you are still with me on this rambling thought parade, think of your "can" in becoming you at this present time. Think of the "can" or "cans" you are facing still to further improve any number of areas in your life. Since I am a Dentist, I'm going to add my two cents to the little poem of hard I shared earlier.
Achieving and maintaining healthy teeth, gums, and function is hard. Living with cavities, gum disease, and infection is hard. Choose your hard.
It's also painful, smelly, and costly to treat. I'm such a downer. Living in this community exposes me to many successful and inspiring individuals and I know it was a long difficult road to get there. I see you. You are seen because I know that sometimes it feels like you're not. Keep it up. You've got that needle pinned on the hard but awesome side of the spectrum. You're inspiring those around you. Thank You.
Read I Can’t Do It, It’ll Be Hard and other Smile Montana articles by Dr. John F. Miller, DDS, in 406 Woman magazines.