DETROIT - April 15th is a loaded day and filled with dread. Its tax day and is also the day rocker Joey Ramone died. On this "throwback Thursday" let us remember that the 15th is also the anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. The Henry Ford Museum put together a special Titanic show a while back and had artifacts from the ship wreckage and vintage photographs. It was a haunting look at the past and a somber walk back through time.
The Henry Ford Museum does a fantastic job of putting exhibitions together and always pay attention to the smallest details. Upon arrival at the entrance gate, the visitor is given a ticket to enter the exhibit. It was printed up as a boarding pass with information of a real Titanic passenger complete with personal history and his name. My passenger for this journey was a man who was coming to America to be a millionaire. He was a young man in his 20's and spent his money on clothes and didn't have a lot of means. He had died on this virgin voyage. As I walked into the show and found a recreation of the luggage room filled with old trunks, antique photographs, worn leather luggage, and stamped tickets and passports.
There were pictures of beautiful young people in ornate frames. The photographs were faded in rich brown duotones and the women had exquisite hairstyles of the day. One photograph, in particular, was of a young girl and she had died on the ship. Her eyes seemed to follow me wherever I went in the room and it was eerie. This room opened up into a unique recreation of the famous wooden staircase featured in James Cameron's film "Titanic". Couples were getting their pictures taken and it was not only a great souvenir but also a testimony to their love for one another. I was currently on the outs with my then-girlfriend but wasn't going to let a chance like this go by. I wanted to get my picture on there too so I worked up the guts to go up there alone and get it done. My hope was that if I stayed faithful and had love in my heart the right woman would show up one day. In the movie "Titanic" actor Leo DiCaprio waits under the clock for his date to arrive. He smartly advises everyone at his dinner table sage life advice to "make every day count".
Fate and love are interesting allies that we contend with this life. Both can be unpredictable at best and it is always in the best interest to remain faithful. I showed up alone on that staircase with the belief that the God I know and have been friends with all of these years would never let me be alone in this world. I set the intention that someone special would come. That opportunity showed up in the Fall of 2018. A woman I was intrigued by as a young boy was re-introduced to me by miraculous circumstances. We are in fact together this day.
AMAZING EXHIBITS !!
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