A Metanoia Summer

Have you ever felt as if you had another life somewhere out in the universe? Not just any life, but a better one than you already have. I’ve always thought my grandmother had one. She used to tell me stories about the times she spent on the Titanic ship. That was before its tragedy of course. My Abuela mentioned that the summer of 1912 was a life-changing moment for her. I never knew why, until my family had a gathering one late night around spring.

Long Island, New York

It was the summer of 1912, and my grandmother Carletta had the best experience with life. My grandmother always liked to go on boats and ships. She said she felt like she was flying. Whenever she stood over the railing, she would stand there while holding out her arms to breathe in the fresh air of the sea. That was her favorite thing to do when she was ever on one. Those moments felt like the wind to her. Every time she spent the summer out in the ocean, time will always go by quickly. But this “special summer” as she called it, made her become the woman she is today.

Carletta always spent the summers at her aunt Harmony’s place. Harmony’s house was near the beach, so that was an excuse to go into the ocean every time when the warm seasons came. A month before April, she went on a cruise with her two cousins and had the time of her life. Now sometimes her summer wasn’t the usual fun. My grandmother opened up to me about losing her boyfriend that following last year and it really made her feel sad. But Harmony was always there to revive my grandmother’s spirits right back up.

Grandmother will tell me about so many passionate times between her and Vince. Vince was the one I mentioned a few seconds ago, the one my grandmother was so head over heels in love with. He made her feel like she was the only girl in the world. Even after the breakup, he still made it clear that she was always in his heart. And that she was the only girl that will remind him of that.

Two weeks before “the ship of dreams” will take off into the sea, Carletta wanted to spend as much time with friends as she could before she started college in the fall season. She went to a casino and went site seeing in the city as well. Everything was going the way she wanted it to. The way it was supposed to be. You see grandmother never had the chance to go sightseeing around the city because she was a stay-at-home baby. So this was a first for her. Basically, she was a water person so the land wasn’t really her thing.

4 days later ( after the Titanic tragedy )

Carletta received a call from her mother who was pleading for her to come home right away. Without thinking, she hurried and left her aunt’s place instantly. When she returned home, her mother looked like she was crying before her daughter showed up. When she got settled in, that's when her mother told her what happened. Vince was from England, so the ship was supposed to land in New York not too long ago. The ship sank due to an iceberg which led many people to die out in the cold Atlantic Ocean, including Vince. He wasn't a very good swimmer. Vince and Carletta were supposed to patch things back up before he and she started their freshman years. But with this news, my grandmother never was somewhat the same again.

My grandmother always went out into the Atlantic ocean with flowers to represent his death. Most times she would spend hours out there. We would always have to go with her. Rumors have it, Vince was never found. Carletta didn’t let the disappearance of Vince keep her down but I knew she was still grieving. Her life was just different after that. She would usually say 1912 was another life for her but in an old dimension perhaps.