Scalpel. O.R. Push 1 Epi. Death. If you read those and didn't automatically think of "Grey's Anatomy," then I think you're in the wrong place. But I can lead you to the right place and that is Netflix, which has all 12 seasons of "Grey's Anatomy," and you can come back when you're done. Or you can read this anyways; it's your life after all (at least it is for now, before watching "Grey's") (because once you start it will consume you). I was a little late to the game when it came to watching everyone on Earth's favorite show. I started just a few months ago and finished every season including 12 (recently uploaded to Netflix) just a few days ago. I was hesitant to start the show because I thought to myself, "What could be so great about it?" and, "Is it really worth my time?" and the answer to those are, everything, and yes. Yes, it is worth my time. It is worth your time, trust me.
There's something so addictive about the whole story line and how dramatic it is. It feeds my lack of drama in my own life and manages to make me sob nearly every episode. I mean cry like you've never cried before. As you probably already know, "Grey's" is infamous for its many heartbreaking deaths. I managed to get attached to every character, and at this point I have felt like I have attended hundreds of funerals for my very attractive doctor friends. (Spoiler Alert.) My very attractive doctor friends, Mark Sloan and Derek Shepherd. I still miss you both. Why, Shonda Rhimes, why?
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Even though the episodes leave me feeling like I need to eat three tubs of ice cream and lock myself up in a room for the rest of my life, they all have meaningful messages. At the beginning and at the end you will hear a voiceover, typically from Meredith Grey. Sometimes, it will be another character, but regardless, it sets the groundwork for the overarching message of the episode. Here are 10 of those monologues to get you through the day. They jumped up at me and said, "Pick me. Choose me. Love me." just like Meredith Grey said to Derek Shepherd #neverforget. Well, here's the list and as Derek Shepherd would say, "It's a beautiful day to save lives."
1: "It's a little bit horrifying just how quickly everything can fall to crap. Sometimes it takes a huge loss to remind you of what you care about the most. Sometimes you find yourself becoming stronger as a result. Wiser, better equipped to deal with the next big disaster that comes along. Sometimes ... But not always." 8.08
2: “At the end of the day, faith is a funny thing. It turns up when you don’t really expect it. It’s like, one day you realize that the fairy tale is slightly different than your dream. The castle, well, it may not be a castle. And it’s not so important that it’s happy ever after – just that it’s happy right now. See, once in a while, once in a blue moon, people will surprise you. And once in a while, people may even take your breath away.” 1.08
3. "The body is a slave to its impulses. But the thing that makes us human is what we can control. After the storm, after the rush, after the heat of the moment has passed ... we can cool off and clean up the messes we've made. We can try to let go of what was. And then again..." 3.02
4. “You never know the biggest day of your life is the biggest day … not until it’s happening. You don’t recognize the biggest day of your life, not until you’re right in the middle of it. The day you commit to something, or someone. The day you get your heart broken. The day you meet your soul mate. The day you realize there’s not enough time, because you want to live forever … Those are the biggest days, perfect days, you know?” 5.22
5. “Ask most people what they want out of life, and the answer’s simple. To be happy. Maybe it’s this expectation, though … The wanting to be happy, that just keeps us from ever getting there. Maybe the more we try to will ourselves to states of bliss, the more confused we get, to the point where we don’t recognize ourselves. Instead, we just keep smiling, trying like hell to be the happy people we wish we were. Until eventually, it hits us – it’s been there all along. Not in our dreams or hopes, but in the known, the comfortable, the familiar.” 6.22
6. “Biology says that we are who we are from birth. That our DNA is set in stone, unchangeable. Our DNA doesn’t account for all of us though; we’re human, life changes us. We develop new traits, become less territorial. We stop competing. We learn from our mistakes. We face our greatest fears. For better or worse, we find ways to become more than our biology. The risk, of course, is that we can change too much, to the point that we don’t recognize ourselves. Finding our way back can be difficult; there’s no compass, no map. We just have to close our eyes, take a step and hope to god we’ll get there.” 7.04
7. “Adapt or die. As many times as we’ve heard it, the lesson doesn’t get easier. Problem is, we’re human. We want more than just to survive. We want love. We want success. We want to be the best that we can be. So we fight like hell to get those things. Anything else feels like death.” 7.21
8. “Pain, you just have to ride it out, hope it goes away on its own, hope the wound that caused it heals. There are no solutions, no easy answers. You just breathe deep and wait for it to subside. Most of the time pain can be managed, but sometimes the pain gets you when you least expect it, hits way below the belt and doesn’t let up. Pain, you just have to fight through, because the truth is you can’t outrun it, and life always makes more.” 2.05
9. “OK, so, sometimes even the best of us make rash decisions. Bad decisions. Decisions we pretty much know we’re going to regret the moment, the minute, especially the morning after. I mean, maybe not regret, regret because at least, you know, we put ourselves out there. But … still. Something inside us decides to do a crazy thing. A thing we know will probably turn around and bite us in the ass. Yet, we do it anyway. What I’m saying is … we reap what we sow. What comes around goes around. It’s karma and any way you slice it … karma sucks.” 2.19
10. “At some point you have to make a decision. Boundaries don’t keep other people out, they fence you in. Life is messy, that’s how we’re made. So you can waste your life drawing lines or you can live your life crossing them. But there are some lines that are way too dangerous to cross. Here’s what I know: if you’re willing to take the chance, the view from the other side is spectacular.” 1.02
Now that you either got a taste of how amazing "Grey's" is or reminisced on all of these episodes, go out and, as Cristina Yang would say, "Have some fire. Be unstoppable. Be a force of nature."
Love,
A girl who finished Season 12 of "Grey's Anatomy" in two days and is not ashamed.
