A Night Remembered
© Tas
A Night Remembered
Standing at the rail of a science ship
in the black of a moonless night.
Stars lay scattered across the sky
-- diamonds tossed on black velvet --
Small white capped waves lap at the ship.
An icy April wind stirs,
wrapping my skirt around my ankles.
The ship's bell rings twice.
All stills,
becoming a portrait in terror
as images appear:
lifeboats scattered,
bodies, so many bodies,
scrambling in the icy waters.
Beyond,
the majestic ship
Titanic.
Her bow raises higher and higher
as daring souls dive off her decks,
plunging into the frigid sea.
Explosions echo as the ship snaps in half,
then slowly slips into the North Atlantic.
Silence does not reign.
Screams, begging and pleading,
from those struggling in the sea.
Gradually,
those voices are silenced.
Still in their life jackets,
they float by.
Blank lifeless eyes
stare from the depths of a frozen face.
All at once,
the images shimmer
then fade completely.
Overhead,
the stars still sparkle
in the ebony sky.
Still at the rail of the ship,
only now on my knees,
staring at the icy waters
of the North Atlantic
through my tears.
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