Sunk

My family went on a hosted tour through Ireland and Scotland. I enjoyed not being responsible for planning and paid little attention to the itinerary. I was surprised by a visit to The Titanic Experience. First, I wasn’t sure I wanted to experience that. Second, I didn’t know the Titanic and its two “sister ships” were built in Belfast’s shipyards.

It was highly interactive and exceptionally well done. The exhibits covered the engineering, design, launch, and unfortunate disaster. Walking in, we knew how it ended. However, the designers balanced inevitable tragedy with the excitement of groundbreaking engineering and design.

There was a floor dedicated to individual stories and accounts. The magnitude of loss was illustrated by a giant wall of names. The names were divided into groups above and below the water. It was an emotional ride down the escalator, sinking below the waterline. Below the waterline, I found an Ingram, which reminded me of the two Ingrams in the book of names at The Alamo.

After going under the water, multiple large, tumbling dominos stood with the various things that went wrong. Other mistakes were made after the collision, but those weren’t as fair to judge with clear hindsight.

• A crewmember who delivered the ship to port accidentally kept the keys in his pocket. The keys opened the locked box containing the binoculars needed to watch for hazards.

• The captain sailed faster than recommended through the iceberg field because he was confident in his crew’s ability to spot hazards.

• The wireless telegraph was frequently used for personal messages. The crew missed warnings about ice fields, and when disaster struck, sending and receiving requests for help was difficult.

• The ship was fitted with the minimum required lifeboats, which was insufficient for everyone on board.

• The crew never practiced using the lifeboats, so many were sent off without fully loading.

• A ship was close enough to assist, but the one radio operator had already gone to bed.

I put myself in the shoes of a passenger on this majestic ship. The ship was enormous, with a ballroom and incredible cabins. I would have been comfortable, and I would have felt as though everything was okay—until it wasn’t.

The disaster occurred when the Titanic struck an iceberg, but the failures began long before then—a series of tiny things that took out a really big thing. The small, seemingly nothing mistakes added up to the largest maritime disaster ever.

I can see myself making those same choices. Oh, that little thing? It’s not a big deal. If I am not paying attention, the little things add up. I might feel the disaster snuck up on me. Perhaps it was entirely avoidable. Not all disasters are avoidable, but why not avoid the ones I can?

Where am I collecting dominoes? Have I overextended on a series of little things? Will I take time for a safety check?

Be curious, be kind, be whole, do good things.