When I was growing up, I was a Cub and Boy Scout. It was a great experience for me. Many of the lessons I learned then are still with me.

One of them was ”Do your best”. It was the Cub Scout motto and I think it is a good motto for a dentist - much better than perfection and even excellence.

Perfection is not attainable and excellence can be an arbitrary standard.

When we do dental treatment, there are many variables. We may not be able to attain an arbitrary standard.

However, doing your best under the circumstances is very achievable.

A few years ago, I attended a meeting honoring Henry Tanner’s 50 years in dentistry - there were many glowing tributes to Henry from dentists who had been his students. At the end of the meeting, Henry talked about what he thought was important in dentistry. (See the Tanner article under “Masters Articles” on the ISOC web site.)

One of the things he said has stuck with me - “Do your best and let go of the rest”. As I heard him say that I thought, “That is the Cub Scout motto.

Some things come full circle.