A Second Chance

One of my family’s favorite shows is Monk; the series follows an OCD suffering consulting detective, Adrian Monk, who lost his wife, Trudy, to a car bomb. Finding that balance between heartbreak and comedy that mirrors the ludicrous and tragic nature of the world, Monk can take you from tears of joy to sorrow in a few scenes.

In an episode titled, Mr. Monk and the Game Show, the final scene before the rolling credits has the titular character browsing through a journal kept by his late wife. Written in her childhood, we hear a girlish voiceover describes in simple language grief at the loss of a loved pet. She says, “I will never be happy again.”

But Adrian keeps reading. Turning the page we hear the child’s voice excitedly write about going off to camp in her next entry. She tells us that she still thinks upon her departed dog, but finds that her father’s words were true, “God wants us to be happy.”

This simply stated idea seems to be the conclusion of a matter brought up by Monk’s mother-in-law. As they commiserate over the devastating loss of Trudy, the mother-in-law recounts how she decided to give the world a second chance, something Monk is still hesitant to do.

There is chaos in this world—perhaps not as dramatic as murder, but maybe in some cases—and retreat, the severing of yourself from life, can seem a tempting recourse. Turn the page and learn: despite the pain and hardship, Pandora’s Box still holds hope.