BY KATHY KING

Can the Titanic and its musicians teach us a lesson 112 years later?

On April 14, 1912, the Titanic sank in the cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean. This truly was a tragic event. When the “Unsinkable Ship” set sail, there were about 2200 people aboard. This was the ship’s maiden voyage. On the 4th night of the voyage, the ship struck an iceberg and 1500 souls were lost to the depths of the sea. It was indeed a tragedy. I once asked my Great, Great, Aunt Alma, who was born in 1899 (she lived until 1998, she was sharp as a tack even then), if she remembered hearing about the Titanic when she was 13 years old. She told me that she did indeed hear about it. She said it was such a sad story that even the “hill folks” heard about it. She lived in North Carolina at the time.

When I discovered that Aunt Alma knew about the Titanic, I was about 13 years old. Why in the world would a thirteen year old kid even know about the Titanic in the early 1990s? Well, as a child, my parents only allowed me to watch old movies. They said it was for religious purposes. While at the time I could not understand, now I am grateful for those cinematic wonders. In the mix was a movie called, “A Night to Remember.” This was as you can probably guess, about the Titanic. As the movie played, an interest was sparked in me that never left. Actually, an interest in the White Star and Cunard Line of Ships. Some of which, just like the Titanic, met a dreadful end. More information was needed about these lines of massive ships. The Titanic was at the top of the curiosity list. What happened to each of those souls both rich and poor?

As each passenger faced certain death, how did they feel?

I pondered each passenger that faced certain death, did they have faith? Were they at peace or in a place of dread? One such person was named Wallace Hartley, the bandleader on the Titanic.

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/positivepensees/2024/04/can-the-titanic-and-its-musicians-teach-us-a-lesson/