𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘶𝘮𝘢, 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘥𝘺 - 𝙂𝙧𝙚𝙮'𝙨 𝘼𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙢𝙮 (ON HOLD)

sixty - eight - "dr. thomas" - sixty - eight

"Nobody's memory is perfect or complete. We jumble things up. We lose track of time. We're in one place, then another, and it all feels like one long, inescapable moment. It's just like my mother used to say: the carousel never stops turning. Nobody's memory is perfect or complete. We jumble things up. We lose track of time. We're in one place, then another, and it all feels like one long, inescapable moment. So what does it mean? What do we take away? Which pieces will haunt us? Hurt us? End us? Inspire us? It's just like my mother used to say. The carousel never stops turning. You can't get off."
-Meredith Grey, S11E8, "Risk"

"When exposed to trauma, the body deploys its own defense system. From the first second the brain receives the signal that a catastrophe has happened, the blood rushes to the organs that need help the most. Blood floods into the muscles, the lungs, the heart, the brain. The brain makes a decision for the rest of the body. Either face the danger or run away. It's a mechanism designed to protect the body from harm. From knowing that what has happened might be irreparable, we call it 'shock'. When shock wears off, when the body can accept that a trauma has happened, when it can let down its defences, it's a scary moment. It's vulnerable. The shock response had protected us, and it just might have saved us."
-Meredith Grey, S11E9, "Where Do We Go From Here"

"They found this guy in Maine who had been living completely alone in the woods for 30 years. They called him the last true hermit. 30 years without the warmth of human touch, without conversation. The hermit felt more lonely when he was out in the world, than he ever felt in the woods by himself. Surrounded by people, but drowning in solitude. That kind of loneliness can swallow you whole. The last true hermit was found and dragged out of hiding and into the world. Most might find his existence sad, but the hermit knew something we didn't. He knew that when it comes down to it, even when you're with someone, or in the noisy rush of people, it's just you. The one you can count on, and lean on, and depend on. It has to be you. And once you figure that out, that's when being alone becomes a choice."
-Meredith Grey, S11E10, "The Bed's Too Big Without You"

"There's a thing we say when someone dies. We say it to the patient's family. We say, "I'm sorry for your loss." It's a pat little phrase and an empty one. It doesn't begin to cover what's actually happening to them. It lets us empathize without forcing us to feel their devastation ourselves. It protects us from feeling that pain, that dark, sinking, relentless pain. The kind that can eat you alive. And every day, I thank God for that. We can't get too close. If we felt even little of the joy and the hopes that our patients are saying goodbye to, we'd never be able to function. So we say, "We're sorry for your loss." and we hope it offers something. Some little bit of support. Some bit of peace. Some bit of closure. Something good. Some little piece of beauty in the midst of some place dark. An unexpected gift, just when it's needed most."
-April Kepner, S11E11, "All I Could Do Was Cry"

"Everybody has something to hide. We can't just expose all our secrets to the world. That's how we get hurt. That's how we risk hurting other people. We have to decide how much we let out and keep the truth to ourselves. It's scary to reveal everything about ourselves. Fear makes us hold ourselves back. Is that so wrong? Maybe. Probably. But still. It helps to be a little sneaky, a little protective. It's not safe to just blurt out all of your secrets. We can't just lay all the truth out there. Expose ourselves to God and everybody. 'Cause once the truth is out, we have to face it ourselves."
-Meredith Grey, S11E12, "The Great Pretender"

"Dr. Shepherd, do you have a minute?"

"I'm afraid I don't."

"I'm Deborah Curzon. I was asked to come talk to you."