God Himself could not sink this ship!

Ok, as best friend Amy has just informed me, friends, it's April 15. (Well, on the east coast, ok...it will be here soon too! :) 98 years ago today, the great Titanic sank down, down down. In the interest of full disclosure, I must share that the sinking of the Titanic is, like, a thing with me. Why? I have some theories, but I suppose I can't truly say... I liken it to how obsessivly fascinated some people get with historic events like the Civil War, the lives of the Kennedys, etc. I just have a thing with it. I find it so tragically beautiful; such a poetic statement about humankind in 1912 and before...and after! It's so mysterious and fascinating... I never tire of imagining the people on the boat decks; some from backgrounds of unbelievable wealth and others of unimagineable poverty, all facing such a primal fear and reacting in what was, in some cases, beautiful and in other cases, extraordinarily dark ways.

I love the culture of that time-period then as well; the clothes, the music, the hopeful comings-to-America, etc. What a time to build an 'unsinkable' ship and then watch it kill 1,500 people as it plunges into the icy North Atlantic. What a statement...what humility that renders.

I just have a thing, ok?

I started reading books about the Titanic when I was 11 - BEFORE the movie came out, by the way. Of course, once the film did come out I fell in love with it and it remains my favorite movie to this day. And YES, I am going to watch it today (tomorrow) after work with my begrudgingly obedient husband. (I promised to make him a cocktail 'or two' before we start it, heh.) Watching the movie is something I do every year on April 15... my family suffered through it for years, my college roommates obliged (albeit with no shortage of groans) and now Aaron faces the same tradition. (Hey, he knew what he was getting into.) I think they all dislike is mostly because I literally, truly, can quote the dialogue throughout the entire thing...and as much as I try not to say it outloud, sometimes I can't help it! ;) Honestly though, who of you has watched that movie and not at least been even marginally emotionally moved? The despairingly beautiful flute melodies and that dramatic ocean... what a STORY!

I always loved to sleep with the window open after watching it, too. I'm not sure where that came from necessarily, but around this time in Ohio is when the air first starts smelling sweet and the stars get a little brighter at night, and the mysteriousness of the Titanic just always felt a little closer with that silvery breeze coming in. Of course Amy will always frown on this ritual, as she will not let me live down the ONE YEAR when she, of course, was watching the movie with me and then contracted a pretty severe cold the next week. She whines to this day that it was because of my open window...pish posh! ;)

I suppose I really don't have anything particularly introspective to share today, just that I love remembering the Titanic on the day of it's great battle with fate, even though it ended tragically. It makes me feel thoughtful and lovely; it makes me feel like I have a connection with the past, even if for no other reason than that I acutely appreciate the magnitude of it.

One final note - did you know that a great number of people who died on the Titanic refused to get on lifeboats because they wouldn't accept the fact that the boat was sinking? That's a powerful image right there. If your boat's ever sinking, I hope you realize it, friend.

And remember - if you think God can't sink, can't destroy, or can't fix something, you can't be more wrong. I pray you'll find a lifeboat. :)




(Title of this post is, of course, that famous quote from White Star Line giant Bruce Ismay, who allegeldy is the one who begged Captain Smith to speed up the boat to 'make the papers.' He did this even though there was severe iceberg dangers. He then reportedly was one of the first to run to the front of the line and take a place on a lifeboat even though there was limited space available...I promised myself I wouldn't start getting all "Did you know?" in this post but I can't help it! Grin...)