Story of US - 19th episode!
(19)
“Oh, I am sorry, I didn’t see you coming.” Ted apologized as he accidentally poured the whole tub of elephants’ food onto the person who he bumped into.
“It is okay. I didn’t watch my way, I am at fault too.” Joy smiled.
Looking up, Ted said, “Hi, Joy! It’s you. How come you are here?”
“It’s my first day of work here. I am trying to find my way to the HR office. They told me to turn here and there. Now I think I’m lost; I don’t know my directions well.” Joy replied.
“I see. Let me clear up this mess and I shall bring you there.” Ted said as he put the food back into the tub.
“Let me help you then.” Joy said,
During lunch, at the Zoo’s cafeteria…
“How you find the work so far?” Ted said.
“Working as a Zoo assistant is not as simple as I thought, but it’s fun! I simply love the animals!” Joy replied with a smile.
“Yah, there is alot to be done daily. Feeding the animals on time, cleaning their cages, checking on the cleanliness of their resting places and doing rounds with the vets to check on the animals’ health are just part of the job.” Ted started to share his knowledge. “You certainly need a lot of passion to stay on the job. I’ve seen a lot of youngsters like us who left after less than a month. Often, they complained that the working environment stinks and the pay is too low for doing so many things.”
“How long have you been working here?” Joy asked.
“Oh, tomorrow would be exactly a year. I love animals. Seeing them every weekend simply brightens up my day. Whenever I am down, I would talk to them and they seem to understand my problems. I feel so much better after talking to them. There’s also the joy when the animals give birth. A new life, a new hope. All these are more than what money can bring. The animals keep me going. They give a whole new meaning to my life.” Ted smiled as he described the joy and happiness received from his job.
“I can see that you really enjoy this job. I took great effort trying to persuade Daddy and Mummy into letting me take up this part time job. They said it is dangerous as I need to get in touch with wild animals. However, I think it would be interesting to understand the animals’ habits and behaviors. I supposed the Zoo would have safety precautions right?” Joy said.
“Of course they have. Don’t worry, the animals are safe. Actually animals only attack humans when they are provoked, even those in the wild. From my one year of working experience here, I have not heard of anyone being attack by the animals. Maybe I can get Mum to assure Aunt Angie. Time to get back to work now.” Ted said as he stood up.
“Thanks for the treat! You shouldn’t have.” Joy said as she followed after him.
“It is my form of apology for dirtying your clothes. Luckily, the Zoo provides uniforms.” Ted turned and winked at Joy.
“Look who’s here!” Jim exclaimed.
“Hi Ted! What brought you here tonight?” Angie walked over to the door.
“Hi Aunt Angie! I was just accompanying Joy home. Today is her first day at work in the Zoo and we bumped into each other as she reports to work.” Ted said.
“Go over and sit with Uncle Jim then. Joy, go up and take your shower first.” Angie said as she kissed Joy on her forehead.
The Reynolds family is a loving family envied by a lot of people. They expressed their love openly. Since young, it had been their habits to bid their family members good byes and welcome them home with a kiss, regardless of the gender.
“Yes, Mum!” Joy said.
“Hi Dad! I’ll come to join you in awhile.” With that, Joy went up the stairs.
“George! How come you are here?” Ted gave a surprised look as he sat down at the table with them.
“I came to look for Ralph just now and Uncle Jim invites me to stay for their performance. How about you? You frequent Hartford?” George asked.
“Oh, Uncle Jim and Aunt Angie are my Mum’s best friends! And I just became colleague with their daughter also my childhood friend, Joy.”
“How did I forget that you have been working in the Zoo, Ted?” Angie said as she sat down. “I should have asked Renee to let you talk Joy into not joining the Zoo.”
“Aunt Angie, even if you have approached me, I guess I would not be able to help you. Maybe Mum would have helped me into persuading you instead. That is also one of the reason I am here tonight, to do Joy a favor. She needs me to help her assure both Uncle Jim and you that she would safe working in the Zoo. I have been there for nearly a year and heard no accidents of any sort. Moreover, the Zoo has safety precautions for us Zoo assistants. Don’t worry about that. Plus I would be there to watch over Joy.” Ted said showing a big grin on his face.
“Kids nowadays really have alot of reasoning to do with us adults. Honey, our parenting roles are going to be very different as our parents. We do not even dare to speak a word when our parents lectured in the past.” Angie sighed.
“Dear, times have changed. Just leave it to them to decide. And as Ted has put it, he would protect Joy. Haven’t we agreed that our children happiness is what matters the most? As long as Joy is happy with it, we should support her as parents.” Jim said as he placed his hand around Angie’s shoulders.
“Hi Ted!” Naomi greeted as she walked over to the table during the intervals.
“Ralph, the performance was great!” George complimented.
“Thanks.” Ralph forced a smile in Jim’s presence and went over to get a drink from James.
“Uncle Jim, thanks for asking me to stay for this nice performance! I wished to stay for the other half, but I have something on now. It is time I make my move. Naomi, your singing is good. You have a nice voice, I am sure you can be a star in the future.” George stood up as he finished his sentence.
“I am leaving with you, George. Got to rush home for dinner before Mum starts nagging. Bye Uncle Jim, Aunt Angie! Bye Joy! I’ll be seeing you at the Zoo tomorrow. Bye Naomi!” With that, Ted walked out of Hartford Pub with George.
“Oh, I am sorry, I didn’t see you coming.” Ted apologized as he accidentally poured the whole tub of elephants’ food onto the person who he bumped into.
“It is okay. I didn’t watch my way, I am at fault too.” Joy smiled.
Looking up, Ted said, “Hi, Joy! It’s you. How come you are here?”
“It’s my first day of work here. I am trying to find my way to the HR office. They told me to turn here and there. Now I think I’m lost; I don’t know my directions well.” Joy replied.
“I see. Let me clear up this mess and I shall bring you there.” Ted said as he put the food back into the tub.
“Let me help you then.” Joy said,
During lunch, at the Zoo’s cafeteria…
“How you find the work so far?” Ted said.
“Working as a Zoo assistant is not as simple as I thought, but it’s fun! I simply love the animals!” Joy replied with a smile.
“Yah, there is alot to be done daily. Feeding the animals on time, cleaning their cages, checking on the cleanliness of their resting places and doing rounds with the vets to check on the animals’ health are just part of the job.” Ted started to share his knowledge. “You certainly need a lot of passion to stay on the job. I’ve seen a lot of youngsters like us who left after less than a month. Often, they complained that the working environment stinks and the pay is too low for doing so many things.”
“How long have you been working here?” Joy asked.
“Oh, tomorrow would be exactly a year. I love animals. Seeing them every weekend simply brightens up my day. Whenever I am down, I would talk to them and they seem to understand my problems. I feel so much better after talking to them. There’s also the joy when the animals give birth. A new life, a new hope. All these are more than what money can bring. The animals keep me going. They give a whole new meaning to my life.” Ted smiled as he described the joy and happiness received from his job.
“I can see that you really enjoy this job. I took great effort trying to persuade Daddy and Mummy into letting me take up this part time job. They said it is dangerous as I need to get in touch with wild animals. However, I think it would be interesting to understand the animals’ habits and behaviors. I supposed the Zoo would have safety precautions right?” Joy said.
“Of course they have. Don’t worry, the animals are safe. Actually animals only attack humans when they are provoked, even those in the wild. From my one year of working experience here, I have not heard of anyone being attack by the animals. Maybe I can get Mum to assure Aunt Angie. Time to get back to work now.” Ted said as he stood up.
“Thanks for the treat! You shouldn’t have.” Joy said as she followed after him.
“It is my form of apology for dirtying your clothes. Luckily, the Zoo provides uniforms.” Ted turned and winked at Joy.
“Look who’s here!” Jim exclaimed.
“Hi Ted! What brought you here tonight?” Angie walked over to the door.
“Hi Aunt Angie! I was just accompanying Joy home. Today is her first day at work in the Zoo and we bumped into each other as she reports to work.” Ted said.
“Go over and sit with Uncle Jim then. Joy, go up and take your shower first.” Angie said as she kissed Joy on her forehead.
The Reynolds family is a loving family envied by a lot of people. They expressed their love openly. Since young, it had been their habits to bid their family members good byes and welcome them home with a kiss, regardless of the gender.
“Yes, Mum!” Joy said.
“Hi Dad! I’ll come to join you in awhile.” With that, Joy went up the stairs.
“George! How come you are here?” Ted gave a surprised look as he sat down at the table with them.
“I came to look for Ralph just now and Uncle Jim invites me to stay for their performance. How about you? You frequent Hartford?” George asked.
“Oh, Uncle Jim and Aunt Angie are my Mum’s best friends! And I just became colleague with their daughter also my childhood friend, Joy.”
“How did I forget that you have been working in the Zoo, Ted?” Angie said as she sat down. “I should have asked Renee to let you talk Joy into not joining the Zoo.”
“Aunt Angie, even if you have approached me, I guess I would not be able to help you. Maybe Mum would have helped me into persuading you instead. That is also one of the reason I am here tonight, to do Joy a favor. She needs me to help her assure both Uncle Jim and you that she would safe working in the Zoo. I have been there for nearly a year and heard no accidents of any sort. Moreover, the Zoo has safety precautions for us Zoo assistants. Don’t worry about that. Plus I would be there to watch over Joy.” Ted said showing a big grin on his face.
“Kids nowadays really have alot of reasoning to do with us adults. Honey, our parenting roles are going to be very different as our parents. We do not even dare to speak a word when our parents lectured in the past.” Angie sighed.
“Dear, times have changed. Just leave it to them to decide. And as Ted has put it, he would protect Joy. Haven’t we agreed that our children happiness is what matters the most? As long as Joy is happy with it, we should support her as parents.” Jim said as he placed his hand around Angie’s shoulders.
“Hi Ted!” Naomi greeted as she walked over to the table during the intervals.
“Ralph, the performance was great!” George complimented.
“Thanks.” Ralph forced a smile in Jim’s presence and went over to get a drink from James.
“Uncle Jim, thanks for asking me to stay for this nice performance! I wished to stay for the other half, but I have something on now. It is time I make my move. Naomi, your singing is good. You have a nice voice, I am sure you can be a star in the future.” George stood up as he finished his sentence.
“I am leaving with you, George. Got to rush home for dinner before Mum starts nagging. Bye Uncle Jim, Aunt Angie! Bye Joy! I’ll be seeing you at the Zoo tomorrow. Bye Naomi!” With that, Ted walked out of Hartford Pub with George.
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