I remember watching Titanic for the first time. Yes, it did epitomize the ultimate love-story but I felt that an even greater message portrayed through the movie was the timeless, priceless value of memories.
The movie ends with Gloria Stuart (Rose) standing on the stern of a moving vessel. While her frail body climbs the nautical railings, memories of her life flash in vivid glory upon her mind. As her bare foot reaches the third railing, the movie comes to a dramatic pause. With glazed eyes and an unmistakable look of peace and reconciliation, she looks out upon the undulating waves of a moonlit ocean and with a small cry, releases her clenched hand and flings the prized jewel ‘The Heart of the Ocean’ into the depths of the Atlantic.
As the precious stone sank into the deep darkness of the ocean, I could not reconcile in my mind the sense in forfeiting such a valuable possession to the unmerciful sea, however as I’ve grown older I’ve began to understand. Embodied in that blue stone were the memories of her journey; the sacrifices, the losses, the lessons, the truths and the glorious triumphs of a full and beautiful life. As she released the jewel into the depths of the ocean she was in fact releasing the memories of her life into the depths of forever. That the memories would forever live on, they would remain pure – not adulterated by the world or forsaken for things of tangible worth.
Throwing a bottle into the sea is not about sending a message to an unknown someone as much as it is about releasing our memories, dreams and life aspirations to the vast emptiness of the ocean. Throwing off the apron strings of our heart to find release and reconciliation in life. Sometimes it’s important to do something such as this as spontaneous and illogical as it may appear, for no other reason than releasing ourselves to a greater clarity of thought and a reconcilable peace to our world.
