The Best Surprise
November 10, 2014
"Hey, Zach, when are you coming home?" Zach had just gotten a call from Ginger. It was two days after the Vanderbilt game, and Zach's last class had run a little long, so it was understandable that Ginger would wonder about this. However, Zach noticed that the tone of her voice sounded a little off, almost like it was filled with a little nervousness and something else he couldn't quite make out.
"I'm coming home now," said Zach. It had been a long day, especially since the team had all had to adjust to the time change after flying back from Nashville the day before. Expressing concern for his wife, Zach asked, "Is everything okay?"
"Yes, it is," said Ginger. "But, Zach, just come straight home."
Zach thought that was an odd request, but he agreed. On his way, he got a text from Ginger telling him again to come straight home and not make any stops. Zach asked again if everything was okay, and after she assured him everything was fine, he decided to let it go.
When Zach arrived home, Ginger greeted him and said, "Zach, why don't go you in the kitchen?"
"Of course," Zach said. "Just let me shower and change, and we'll go in the kitchen and have dinner."
"No," said Ginger. "Go in the kitchen."
This is weird, thought Zach. But he obliged. As he approached the kitchen, he could see that there was some kind of long, white stick on the counter. Zach thought, Why is the thermometer on the kitchen counter? When he went to put it away, though, he looked at it and realized it wasn't the thermometer. It was a pregnancy test.
Zach's mind blanked for a moment. Their plan had been to reach their one year anniversary and then start talking about when they would try to start a family. Zach couldn't even say that having a baby was the farthest thing from his mind, because it hadn't even registered as a possibility. Although, he should have known it always could have been a possibility at any time.
Still, after his mind started coming back, it started to register: They were going to have a baby. He was going to be a dad! As his voice started coming back, he stammered, "We're pregnant?"
"Yes!" said Ginger, giving him a hug.
"Wow," said Zach. "We're going to have a baby. I'm going to be a dad!" He thought about jumping up in the air, but decided against it. He had seen earlier that season two NFL players had blown their knees out doing just that. Although the odds were slim, it had been three years since Zach's knee injury and his knee was as strong as ever, he wasn't taking any chances. "I'm going to be a dad!" he said again, with the biggest grin on his face.
Ginger smiled. She had been a little nervous about how he would take the news, since it had been sooner than they had planned on. But she could see his genuine joy.
"This has been the best surprise ever!" added Zach. The smile on his face showed no signs of leaving any time soon.
"So you're happy about having a baby now?" Ginger asked.
"Yes!" said Zach. "It may have been sooner than we planned, but things don't always go the way you planned them."
"I know," agreed Ginger. "When we first met, I told you I didn't date football players. And look at us now!"
"When should we tell everyone?" asked Zach. "My dad, Nanny, your parents...?"
"I think we should at least wait until we've had our first doctor appointment," said Ginger. "I don't know exactly how far along I am yet, and I don't want to be asked questions I can't answer."
"That's a good plan," said Zach.
As they went to sleep that night, Zach kept grinning. He was going to be a dad! This was the best news he could have ever imagined.
The next morning, Zach drove over to the cemetery. Although they weren't telling anyone just yet, he needed to share this with his mom and with Dave.
"Mom, Dave, Ginger's pregnant," said Zach, still grinning. "We're going to have a baby! You're going to get a grandchild," he said, looking over at his mom's plot. "And you're going to get a niece or nephew," he added as he looked at Dave's.
"I'll make sure the baby will know all about his or her grandmother and Uncle Dave," he continued. "And I know everything will turn out great."
When he got home, Ginger asked him how it went.
"It went well," he said. "I just needed to share the news with my mom and with Dave."
"I understand," said Ginger.
Zach said a quick prayer of thanks for the blessing of the new baby, and started crying. But these tears were tears of joy, unlike so many times before. He just wished his mom and Dave could be there to experience it with him. But he knew they were there in spirit, and that he would make sure his child would know all about them and what kind of people they had both been.