Nearer to Thee
His name is John. Tears silently stream down the reddened cheeks of the violinist as he continues to play the haunting melody along with his fellow orchestra mates. He is unable to hold the tears back; they fall unabashedly, streaking his face and hitting the dark black of his jacket. He is only twenty-one years of age. His face is still very much that of a young boy’s innocence in its ruddy complexion, not quite fully developed into the coarser or wiser features that embody an adult’s visage. He finds it strangely ironic that there is such beauty in the strains of Chopin’s Nocturne Op 48 No. 1 in C Minor as the massive ship continues to tilt and fill with water, knowing it will eventually immerse itself completely into the frigid waters of the North Atlantic Ocean. He realizes that he shall never again see his sweet mother or his homeland of Scotland. In his mind, he already hears his sweet Mum’s sobs when she learns of his final moments upon the Oceanic Liner, the Titanic. Life was not supposed to end like this. The horizon seemed limitless when he first set sail. His fingers numb, he continues to play his violin, wishing his mind would be as numb in the horror of the moment.
Roger is even younger than John; he is only twenty years of age and hails from France. He hangs his head in a foreboding sense of abject defeat as he slowly and methodically strums his cello. All about him, people are running and screaming, but he attempts to concentrate on the music instead. It won’t do to worry unnecessarily about what the next hour will bring: it has already been determined, and he knows his fate is sealed. As his bow move effortlessly across the strings of his cello, he wonders what it would have been like to kiss Sophie – or any girl for that matter. He’d never quite gotten up the nerve, and now, more than ever, he regretted it with a rawness that resided deep within his being. Looking up and seeing the throngs of passengers on the deck, many of them wailing in dismay, he turns his attention once again to Chopin’s Nocturne, thinking to himself that a livelier piece would have been much more in order for such an impending event or disaster.
As if reading his mind, the pianist, Theodore, only twenty-four years of age, ends the piece by Chopin and begins a new and perhaps a more soothing one, hoping to quell the panic than has ensued all about them. There is a drastic shortage of lifeboats and the passengers are panicking, each intent on securing a spot in one of the few boats reserved for such. Theodore stares at his bandmates, nods knowingly, and briefly begins a waltz by Johann Strauss. However, moments after beginning the waltz, full fear and pandemonium occur, as the boat groans and disaster looms closer. Theodore realizes the end is nearing. Immediately, he instead begins to play hymns, hoping they will offer comfort in some small measure. Tears fill his eyes. He will never again see London or his beloved wife, Abigail, and his three small children – at least not in this life. The regret that resides in his heart is deep and lasting and will go down with him as the huge ship sinks to reside far beneath in the chilling, frigid waters. He is crying, both for himself and for others. There are so many hopeless souls upon this ship - so many that will never see the dawn of tomorrow.
“Nearer My God to Thee” is now playing. All eight of the orchestra players remaining on the cold deck playing the hymn are now silently crying as the steel of the massive ship releases a moan into the silence of the still night and groans as it breaks in half. Slowly, as if in a dream, the players slide along the deck toward the depths of the encroaching darkness of the sea, tightly holding their instruments in hand. Their last thoughts are a mixture of fear, God, flashes of happier times, and memories of loved ones. With one final lurch, the ship slowly submerges itself completely beneath the icy waters while those in lifeboats silently watch from afar, an overwhelming feeling of sickness enveloping them. There are no words with which to describe the sorrow and the loss that’s felt.
After what has seemed like long hours but has in fact been only a brief lapse of time, it is over. While the courageous musicians played their music, hoping to soothe and comfort the nerves of others, they perished, becoming an immortal part of the Titantic. The eight musicians, the ship, and all its remaining passengers are gone quickly into the eternity of the ocean’s darkness and depths, nearly as if they never existed, but nothing could be further from the truth. It is a tragedy that the world will never forget, as it will never forget the eight brave souls who continued to play despite the doom that they knew would be their end.
“Many brave things were done that night, but none were more brave than those done by men playing minute after minute as the ship settled quietly lower and lower in the sea.” Lawrence Beesley, Titanic survivor