Part Three of Four: Learning the Lesson

Oli, Evi and Keely were eager to go to their lesson. They activated Moiré their AI. She greeted them as she lit the holographic light panel. She had taken her shimmering form, as a winged Fairy Godmother.

"Greetings. Today we will enter Plato's cave and see what is behind the screen. Sometimes, how we imagine and interpret the world is different than reality. I have adjusted my programming to present the analog world, where continuous signals have quantum effects. I can now offer you a number of scenarios that explore various probabilities to enhance your ability to see beyond the digital world of all or none, black or white options."

Moiré's self-generated holographic programs had increased in their sophistication. She presented situations, that let people see themselves beyond the limited two dimensional archetypes for which she had been programmed. She was able to simulate optional predicted effects based on causality.

Oli, Evi and Keely were no longer limited to being observers, displaced from the action. The haptic technology let them sense the environment. They were transported virtually in space and time and were travelling pilgrims immersed in the virtual world.

They were standing on the deck of the Titanic again, as they listened to a crew member point out the stars. He introduced a woman who was dressed in an exotic wardrobe. She was an astrologer. She would interpret the astrological meaning.

They looked upwards. The crewman spoke. "Each year typically has four eclipses. Our passage across the ocean has occurred just after the first lunar eclipse of this year. It will end just before the solar eclipse April 17. You can see Jupiter rising and Saturn setting. The new moon will rise at 04:30 on the 15th. "

The astrologer spoke. "Here, we see the stars reflecting on the still waters on this moonless night of April 14, 1912. As you may know, Catholic Easter is celebrated the first Sunday after the Full Pascal moon, in keeping with ancient Pagan traditions. Last week was Orthodox Easter.

"Arcturus, Spica Capella and Jupiter are in the south, under the sign of Aires. In the southeast Taurus is at its highest point. Venus, the morning star, will rise around 4:30 am. The sunrise will appear in Pisces tomorrow. The alignment of the planets means that today people will be drawn to bring out the compassionate, romantic, artistic, empathetic and sensitive nature of the enlightened man, who is wise and self-sacrificing. Astrologically, this is a time that is associated with feeling of insecure. We will have to wait to see what happens in life. You will be called to solve problems faster than is natural."

Moiré narrated as reality collapsed and reconfigured into a new single matrix. Captain Edward Smith, a distinguished looking man was giving the orders to quartermaster, Robert Hichens. "The night is calm tonight Robert. Full speed ahead. We can make good time and have a good shot at the Blue Riband award."

Oli, Evi and Keely watched the crew on the crow's nest change. Frederick Fleet misplaced his binoculars and was warned, "Keep your eyes open, still water does not make ripples around icebergs, making them harder to see."

Oli, Evi and Keely saw inside the control room where the new invention of Marconi allowed state of the art communication. Moiré explained, "The Ottoman sultan, Abdumecid, offered Samuel Morse the patent to the wired telegraph in order to maintain international unity. The technology of that time and space had many limitations due to mechanical, social and linguistic barriers. The primitive wireless telegraphic limitations needed to be interpreted from the clamour of noise that was called 'mob rule.' The strange names of passengers and primitive telecommunication caused a great deal of confusion. Because of questionable clarity of the messages, the telegraph warnings of icebergs were ignored and not delivered.

Moiré continued, "Communication failures, negligence and navigational errors, combined with a lack of good judgment and blind faith in the technology led to the Titanic hitting an iceberg at 11:40 pm." Oli, Evi and Keely felt the impact shock. It was noted by many passengers as the jolt was felt from stem to stern.

Most people remained calm. Conversations between those walking on deck or playing cards were full of confidence that the boat had been designed with advanced safety features such as of watertight containers. Even the sight of ice on the water did not instil panic. However, the watertight compartments and remotely activated watertight doors did not account for the low probability that the boat would tip. This allowed water to seep through the top of the compartments. This meant anyone sealed in the compartment within the tank, was fated to immediate death.

Keely, Oli and Evi felt the anguish of watching this reality of the past, that could not be changed by virtual reality. They felt the conflicting reality of standing in their home, yet standing on the bridge of the Titanic as the anxiety mounted. Within a short period of time, it became apparent that lifeboats were provided for only half of the number of people on board.

Moiré explained, "Carrying too few lifeboats and using a rudder too small to enable the ship to turn quickly cut the margin of error and the imminent disaster."

Although Moiré delivered facts without emotion she detected that Keely's heart rate and temperature increased. Her understanding and interaction with the human world detected these were symptoms associated with a palatable fear. Keely started sobbing. He said," The stars did align with the tragedy of errors that unfolded."

Evi and Oli reassured him it was just a hologram and Moiré adjusted the program before continuing her narrative. "Gender and age-based protocols were applied as women and children in first-class began to evacuate. This was during a generation where gender and races were not equal. Lifeboats were full of soon-to-be widows and orphans, with few men to navigate and row. Keely and Evi were lowered into the lifeboat alongside the unsinkable Molly Brown. Her fortitude to uphold strong human qualities was not limited by her gender.

They saw children from the 2nd and 3rd class needing to climb iron ladders up five or six floors from steerage to the life boats. When they reached the deck, hysteria, screams and panic formed an audible pulse.

Oli stood with a disproportionate number of men who were aboard the sinking ship. Evi and Keely watched from the lifeboat. Their heart rates had escalated again so Moiré changed scenery.

Oli saw a boat on the distant horizon. It was The Californian, a steamer of the Leyland lines. It had been telegraphing that it was also caught in the ice field. He met Jeremiah Burke, who placed a message in the bottle of holy water offered by his mother Kate Burke. Moiré showed the bottle washing up on the shores of Glanmire, Cork. A year later, Jeremiah's mother died of a broken heart.

The scene moved to watching Astor helping his wife into lifeboat 4. He then helped a young 10-year-old immigrant boy, Elias Nicola-Yarred, known as Louis Garret, who spoke only Arabic. His niece, the daughter of his sister, Amelia Garret Isaac who also survived, wrote the story and was reading from her book. Many Syrians who wanted to escape the brutal conditions in the then Turkish-ruled Ottoman Empire, were passengers on the Titanic.

A map of Syria appeared and transformed into flashes of the past. Moiré explained the changing scenes of the holograms. "Neanderthal remains from 70 000 years ago were found in Syria." She showed war scenes and explained, "Syria is one of the world's most ancient human civilization. For more than two thousand years, Phoenician cities had been dominated by rulers from Assyria, Babylonia, Persia, Macedonia, Rome, Egypt, France and Israel, as well as by the Ottomans and Christian crusaders.They had developed the keel and were destroyed by how what misuse of the very thing they had created."

The scene changed again. A young boy was calling out the newspaper headline: "Titanic disaster- Great Loss of Life." An article written by Joseph Conrad flashed on the screen. Some of his words were bolded. 'The Titanic had victims, not heroes.'

Moiré said, "Conrad had presaged Ismay's situation, as part of the current human condition that favoured corporate profits that compromised humanity. In his novel, 'The Heart of Darkness', set during the unspeakable crimes committed against natives of the Belgium Congo, Conrad has his hero, Nostroma - translated as 'Our man' - face the moral crisis of greed and temptation. His lesson is that each individual must come to recognize how to avoid becoming one of the king’s enemies. The king that holds the greatest power lives within each mind."

Moiré narrated as images of an arrogant Bruce Ismay, the chairman of the White Star Steamship company, was strutting on the deck before the tragedy, and then crying inconsolably and being given opiates in his cabin after being rescued. "Ismay managed to escape, honourably it was reported. He had survived along with 865 other passengers. Some consider him the most universally despised man in the western world. As a business man, Ismay did not want to clutter the decks with lifeboats. This earned him the nickname 'Brute Ismay'. His decision regarding lifeboats caused him suffering through his life, and the lives of his descendants.

"Compressing time and space lets us see one potential consequence of a system driven by larger profits in shorter times. More people and goods were transported faster in a shorter time. Some of the mechanisms that made this possible had reconfigured the essence of how life was conducted when looking at numbers alone."

Moiré set the scene where a Lebanese woman, Shaanineh Abi-Saab, awoke from her sleep when the Titanic struck the mountainous iceberg. They heard her life story, one in which she suffered many tragedies. She had run, in her night gown, grabbing her niece, put on a life jacket and was lowered on the last life boat. Men with guns were threatening men who tried to board the collapsible raft. When they were lowered into the chilly waters, she discovered that she shared a seat in the boat with Bruce Ismay.

"Shaanineh was offered support by the Jewish society and over the years worked to care for her remaining family. They also worked hard and established themselves in business. They formed the Joy Cone Company, the world's largest ice cream cone producer," Moiré explained.

Moiré continued creating a holographic narrative. "Survivors reported many men felt a sense of over-responsibility that allowed lifeboats to be launched without being filled to capacity. Men who took advantage of these situations, saying they could row a boat, were shamed. Henry Sleeper Harper and his wife and manservant (an Ottoman dragoman who acted as an interpreter, translator and guide) that he had bought in Egypt as a joke, and his Pekingese dog survived.

Moiré commented, "It seems that the cosmos had a number of errors in its filing code. There was much confusion associated with the fates of individuals. Another Syrian, Nicola Nasser, an anglicized version of his name Niquila Nasrallah, lost his life. Nasrallah owned a confectionary business and Nickelodian theatres. In spite of the lion and sword symbol of honour, bravery, power and strength tattooed on his right arm, he was confused with Astor. Both were millionaires, travelling in first class, married a second time to a younger wife who was pregnant. He placed his wife in lifeboat 10."

Keely and Evi were back in the life boat. They shivered with the other survivors. As they were rowing they felt the fear of succumbing to frostbite. They felt the bitter cold air and their clothes frozen to their bodies. Keely sat close to his mother and they rowed as one. Keely said, Will Daddy be alright?" Evi replied, "There is no way of knowing."

Oli, Evi and Keely experienced each other's different perspectives as the stern disappeared around 03:30 April 15, 1912. They all heard the band play “Nearer My God to Thee” until a thundering explosion hurt the survivors ears. Evi and Keely viewed the Titanic sinking, the lights going out, and the whirlpool formed by the sinking ship.

Oli 's cries joined those in the water for the next 45 minutes. The repeating crescendos of the screams of people in the water ended in an eerie silence as human life had disappeared, swallowed into the ocean. However, Oli followed the lead of another man, Colonel Gracie.

Moiré explained, "Colonel Gracie, an author, historian , soldier and real estate investor and survivor wrote a book about the Titanic. He reported a case of mental telepathy he had experienced after he had been swamped into the ocean by a wave. He held his breath for an interminably long time and was ready to meet his maker and prayed that he could have one last communication with his wife. At the same time, she was unable to sleep was drawn to pray. Her prayer book opened to the prayer, 'for those at sea'. The man in the water heard this prayer and made his way to an overturned dingy, surviving with others and went on to talk about the psychological state of mind over matter."

Moire removed the Holodeck simulation. "I hope that I have been able to help you extend your limits of stress to effect optimal learning. This program was designed to elicit the same emotions as a test, that provides a limited time for an intense experience that has been shown to aid in memory retention and consolidation."

Evi said, "Thank you Moiré, you handled the parameters as I had outlined." However, she realized that Keely was not alone in being shaken by the experience. Oli and Evi held Keely close before they spoke.

Evi explained to Keely, "My darling, you have seen and felt many sorts of sadness and pain in today's lessons. I know it was not easy, and you have been very brave. What lessons have you learned?"

Keely's eyes grew dark, he thought for a moment then he expressed a series of his concerns and the parents listened and responded in turn. "I was really scared that Daddy would die. I had never thought of him dying before. I felt safe with Mom, but knew that we could die. I did not like it. Do you think that stars can really predict the future like the astrologer said? The story of Mr. Ismay made me have lots of emotions. His actions made me angry and sad and afraid. How could he have lived with himself after having made the decision not to have lifeboats?"

Oli responded, "I was afraid of dying as well my son. It's hard to accept that death is part of life. What was the hardest to bear, was that so many people had utter confidence in the safety of the boat. Life is full of unexpected challenges. As for the stars predicting destiny, it is hard to imagine how outside forces from the alignment of planets could control all of the steps that would lead to a disaster like the Titanic. However, the warnings were strangely aligned with reality. Great scientists used to make a living through writing horoscopes. Many mystics still believe in the saying 'as above so below'. We are not able to prove that the universe is a mirror for what happens on Earth. There is lots of uncertainty. Predictions from the stars do remind us to prepare for the unexpected and be aware.

Said Evi, "Your father and I were worried about exposing you to this simulation. You have not yet seen trauma, but, my love, your father and I will not live as long as we would like. We are doing our best to help you recognize how your emotions for self-survival must sometimes be balanced. It is not easy to follow cultural norms. You need to trust common sense, and choose to act and live or die with your choices."

"Sweetheart, next lesson Moiré is programmed to talk about what happened to the survivors.We will listen more than think or feeling. This was the hardest lesson my love. You were very brave. It might be hard to synthesize what you are feeling, but your dad and I are here for you.

" I think this is a good time to go for a bike ride and a picnic. We are in the here and now, not on the Titanic. Let's go!" And with that, the three cycled through the woods on a warm day, and spoke of the reflections of the lesson that arose among them.