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Pure joy is something that we don’t get to experience all that often. Happiness, sure – that’s something we can expect. But joy? How many people can say they’ve truly felt that? When a moment like that comes along, there’s nothing you can do but revel in it, because it’s definitely not going to last forever.
Derek bounced Zola on his hip and tickled her cheek. “Hey, sweetie, want to see if your new baby brother is awake?” he asked.
Zola grinned up at him. “Yes!” she said, poking his nose with her finger as if to make her point.
Despite his exhaustion, Derek grinned, and knocked on the door to Meredith’s hospital room. “Look who’s come to visit?” he called, sing-song-like, opening the door.
“You woke him!” Meredith said indignantly, as the baby let out a whimper that threatened to turn into a howl.
“Well, somebody has to be introduced to her little brother, so she can start her big sister duties,” Derek explained. “Here, Zola, why don’t you have a cuddle with Mommy.” He put Zola down on the bed and gently picked up Bailey, who quieted in his arms.
Zola scooted across the bed and onto Meredith’s lap. “Hey, careful Zo-Zo, Mommy’s got a sore belly!” Meredith said, stroking her daughter’s hair.
Derek brought Bailey over to the bedside. “Zola, want to say hello to your brother?”
Zola reached out a chubby hand. Derek perched on the edge of the bed and held Bailey out towards his daughter. “Bailey, meet your big sister.”
Joy. Plain and simple. It’s funny… sometimes the things we never thought we would want in life are the things that bring us the most pleasure.
“Bailey, you’re such a baby!”
The sounds of bickering children echoed through the house. Meredith sighed and rolled over. “Can we just leave them at Christina’s house and run off to Hawaii?” she moaned, melodramatically.
Derek groaned and put a pillow over his head. “Go back to sleep,” he mumbled drowsily.
Meredith propped herself up on one elbow and glared at him. “How can you sleep through this?” She sighed. “I was hoping that we would get until at least 8am on our one day off to enjoy the sleep.”
“Bailey-baby-Bailey-baby!”
“Yeah? Well at least I’m not a stinky GIRL!”
“Give that back! That’s mine!”
“Is not!”
“Is too!”
Derek groaned again, and threw the pillow off his head. “That’s it. I’m awake.”
Meredith raised an eyebrow at him. “Good! I don’t want to be the only one suffering here!”
“Do you think we should go break it up yet?” Derek asked, sounding very much as if he would rather not.
Meredith rubbed her eyes. “I guess we should make them some breakfast. Or…” She looked at Derek, half-naked and tangled in the bedsheets, his hair rumpled in his eyes. “…I could maybe think of another way of ignoring them for a while longer…”
Derek laughed. “Oh, you can, can you? What might that be?” he added, teasingly.
Meredith pulled him towards her, giggling, and kissed him, wrapping her legs around him.
They say it’s amazing how time flies. And it’s true - one minute, you’re drinking coffee and feeling like a single day goes on forever, and the next minute, it’s ten years later and you’re wondering where all the time went. But sometimes, some moments, they last an eternity, no matter how quickly time moves forward. The bad ones? You exile them to the corners of your memory that you try and never visit again. The good ones? Those are the ones to hold on to.
“Mom! Over here!”
Meredith’s eyes searched the crowd, seeking out her tall, willowy daughter.
“Mom, did you see me?”
For a moment, Zola sounded 6 years old again, coming off stage from her first school play – but here she was, 22 and graduating college. Meredith wasn’t sure if she wanted to grin or cry. “I saw you! You look absolutely beautiful!”
Zola laughed. “Where’s Dad? And Bailey?”
“They spotted one of your father’s old professors – I think they’re just across the field. Your Dad wanted to introduce Bailey to him as the future Dr. Shepherd junior.”
Zola rolled her eyes. “Right…” Her smile faded. “Mom, are you and Dad upset that I didn’t apply to Med School like Bailey wants to?”
Meredith looked at her tall, beautiful, smart daughter. “Zola,” she said, putting both hands on her shoulders and looking her right in the eyes. “We couldn’t possibly be more proud of you than we are today. Just because Surgery is a bit of a family tradition doesn’t mean we aren’t proud of you and what you’re doing.”
Her daughter still looked nervous. “I’m really happy you said that. Because actually…”
“Hey, sis! Congrats!” Bailey bounded up to them and pulled her into a bear hug.
Derek followed up behind him. “Congratulations, Miss Zola Shepherd, B.A.! How does it feel to be done?” He put one arm around his wife and the other around his daughter. “How about I take both of you beautiful ladies out for lunch?”
“Hey, what about me?” Bailey said, pouting in mock-indignation.
“No lunch for you! Sorry buster, this is for grads only,” Derek joked.
As they head across the university lawns, Meredith turned to Zola. “What did you want to tell us, anyway?”
Zola bit her lip for a moment, and drew in a breath. “Um… well, I guess I should tell you all now. I got a job!”
“That’s great news, sweetie! The Seattle school board finally got back to you?” Meredith looked at her daughter proudly.
“Well, actually… it’s in Korea.”
Derek stopped walking abruptly and looked at his daughter. “Korea? You never told us you were applying to jobs outside of the state, even!”
Zola looked up at her father. “I never thought I would get it! It’s at this international private school – and it’s so cool, Dad! It has it’s own private island, it has swimming pools and a huge theatre for school productions. They only have one other Drama teacher right now, so I’ll get to be in charge of the elementary school plays, and it’s just the most amazing opportunity!”
Meredith looked stunned. “Why didn’t you tell us about it before?”
Zola bit her lip again, but spoke quickly. “I never thought I’d get the job. But I really want to take it. I know it’s really far away, but I really want to do this! The pay is amazing and I could travel in the holidays, and I’ve been starting Korean classes so I can do groceries and stuff, and… please be happy for me?”
Meredith looked at her for a moment, and then smiled. “Oh, sweetie… how could you think we would ever not be happy for you? If you’re sure this is what you need to be doing right now, then you should do it. But you’d better be home for Christmas!” She pulled her daughter into a hug, with tears in her eyes.
Derek sighed. “I was hoping you’d come home and live in your old room, maybe go back to high school for a while, play with your dolls some more….”
He cracked up as Zola punched him lightly in the arm with an exasperated “Dad!”. “What? A father can’t dream? You can go wherever in the world makes you happy, on one condition….”
Zola raised an eyebrow, Meredith-style. “What?” she said, half-suspicious.
“That you come here and give me a hug.”
He pulled his daughter towards him and squeezed her tight. Meredith joined in from the other side, and then Bailey wrapped his long arms around all of them.
Moments of joy. Cherish them, hold on to them, embrace them. They keep us company through the passage of the years.