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When Time Stopped, the Music Started


 Nobody told me about the elevator mats on a cruise ship.

Alaskan Cruise Ship Holland America

Perhaps it was felt that the mats were too nondescript to be of any consequence, and certainly not the vivid Persian carpets one might expect, given the elegant décor on the rest of the ship. Instead, the floor inserts were made of ordinary blue carpet emblazoned with the current day of the week in huge gold letters, possibly in an 840 size Times New Roman font.

This omission of information about the cruise carpets was likely due to the many other topics deemed to be of greater import for first-time cruisers: exciting day excursions, varied onboard activities, expected attire, and never-ending food options. In any case, not one person mentioned that I would need an elevator mat to inform me of the day of the week.

Cruise Elevator Mat - SaturdayAfter several days of shopping, packing, and rushing to get to the port in time, my husband, Cliff, and I boarded the Nieuw Amsterdam – on a Saturday. We were well aware of the name of that day, and found it a bit odd and rather unnecessary that every single elevator had Saturday imprinted on the floor mat.

We wondered if the mats would be changed for Sunday. Sure enough, all fourteen elevators had Sunday carpets by the next morning.

The weekday mats were even changed in our four favourite smaller elevators with glass floor-to-ceiling walls that traversed several stories on the outside of the ship.

At first, I wondered if cruise clientele typically required such basic reminders of the day of the week, but by Monday I understood. Life’s pace had changed.

Only Clock on Cruise ShipOur cell phones, normally the prime informers of date and time, were turned off to avoid prohibitive roaming charges on international waters. The huge ship was devoid of clocks, except for one small eight-inch circle of metal and glass that hung somewhat forlornly at the front desk on the main floor, out of the way of most of our comings and goings.

Although we intermittently checked the TV for the time, we gradually found a life rhythm not governed by a clock. Our meal times were prompted by our appetites rather than by the time of day. We slept when we were tired, and took little note of the fleeting darkness that marked the end of one day and the beginning of the next. We started riding up and down those glass elevators just because we could and had no reason to rush anywhere.

Moments turned into minutes and unknowingly passed into days.

  • Elevator on Cruise Ship

Thankfully, the fourteen elevator mats were always in place, ushering in each new day with its own rite of passage as the crew faithfully rotated the ninety-eight mats through their seven-day cycle. Soon, however, even the day of the week on the floor mats lost significance as we slid up and down the ocean vessel in the glass elevators, mesmerized by the stunning views of the ever-changing water and the BC and Alaska coastlines.

Glass Elevator

Time had stopped.

Ironically, with the clock no longer holding us hostage, we had more hours to meander about the ship and stare at the endless sea.

Most importantly, we had time to listen to music.

For me, this was an anomaly. Although I might be considered by some to be a professional musician, my husband is always astounded that I rarely listen to music. In part, I find music recordings distracting as I automatically analyze the instrumentation, quality of the composition, and musicality of the performers. Most of all, I usually find that technology takes out the highs and lows of the music and lessens the emotional impact of the performances.

I do love live music, however. Cliff, my husband and music soul mate, shares this love and we enjoy all music styles when performed well. Unfortunately, work schedules and financial constraints usually prevent any sort of regular concert attendance.

One year we decided to change this pattern by planning ahead so that we would attend three concerts during the school year. We even prepaid the tickets so that we would be sure to make time for this entertainment.

The first concert was supposed to be the fulfillment of my life-long dream to attend a Sing-Along Messiah. Even though I enjoyed trying to sightread my little-used score, the conductor’s weak attempts at humour interjected between each number prevented any deep emotional reaction. My imagined solemn reflective experience of Handel’s masterpiece was ruined.

The second event, a concert by a woodwind jazz quartet touted to be one of the best in the city, was even more regrettable. After frantically unscrambling our complicated schedules, we mostly battled falling asleep as the instrumentalists droned on through the monotonous repertoire with robotic playing.

The third production, a dinner theatre featuring Fiddler on the Roof, was to be an intimate evening filled with romantic memories of our honeymoon when we had first watched this musical.  We often recalled how Cliff had belted out “If I Were A Rich Man” while we strolled across the picturesque stone bridge in Banff, the song being particularly poignant as we could barely afford to share a bowl of soup in the pricey restaurants.

The play was also to be Cliff’s payment of dues for missing an opportunity to take me to this play for my birthday some years back.  I often reminded him of this error, so I suspected his reason to take me to this performance might not have been as much motivated by an amorous feeling as an attempt to put an end to my grumbling.  Regardless, I was excited to go an a date with my husband to see Tevye and Golde in action. However, the evening was another disappointment, despite Cliff’s good intentions and great company.  A few instrumentalists managed to play reasonably well, but the food was bland and the acting uninspiring.

We never pre-planned our concerts again. We realized that we were usually too exhausted to to enjoy these events in the middle of our hectic schedules, and certainly did not want to spend our precious time listening to lacklustre performances.

Well-rested on Cruise ShipNow, on our Alaskan cruise, we were given a week of “time-staying-still” and found that experiencing the music onboard became our favourite pastime. Well-rested, we were able to listen and absorb the performances of world-class musicians performing in a variety of music genres without the pressure of finding a parking spot or having to think about the extensive to-do lists awaiting us the next morning.

We rotated from one group to the next: The Band, Adagio, and BB King’s All Stars. My soul responded to the music, even when surrounded by chit-chat. I applauded as loudly as I could, hoping my enthusiasm would bring balance when I felt the listeners were not sufficiently appreciative of the high calibre of the performing musicians.

At one outstanding presentation, the five members of The Band teamed up with Adagio, a classical piano/violin duo, to provide live music for a BBC Documentary on Alaskan scenery and wildlife.  While the visual effects on the huge screen were breathtaking, I was more captivated by the performers’ impeccable precision and the consequent perfect synchronization of the music with the film footage.  I spent most of the thirty minutes straining to see the musicians on the darkened stage.

We almost missed the musical highlight of our cruise.  

We happened to wander into a smaller room in a more remote area of the ship where New Zealander Damian Brell was performing. He sang a variety of styles with an impressive vocal range, and managed to make the mediocre grand piano sound like a great instrument. Even though I knew I was making a spectacle of myself, I could not resist walking up to the piano at one point to get a closer view of his flying fingers, and, amazingly, I could not see which keys he was playing.

Cruise Musician Damian Brell

We felt the magic of music that night.

It was not just Damian’s musicianship or technical expertise that kept us all in that room. The charged atmosphere was partly due to the intimacy of one person at the piano, singing with a passion that called and asked us to feel the depth of the lyrics and the melodies.  However, it was also the engaged and responsive audience, calling out requests, and sometimes singing along, that completed the circle of the interplay of the musician and listeners. The performance was sincere and the applause heartfelt, and for a brief moment in time, we, earth sojourners gathered from all over the world in that tiny room, had a sense of being one as we allowed the emotion of the music to wash over us.

Only occasionally have I experienced this surreal music magic at a live performance, but when it happens, the sense of connection is so palpable I feel I could reach out and physically touch it. It is not limited to a cruise ship or a concert hall, although it is sometimes found there. It can just as likely be encountered at a family jam session or a campfire sing-a-long, and when it happens, music becomes the instrument that takes us to a deep place of communion that words cannot explain.

The power of music can also be found in silence.

I discovered anew, this mystical music experience without audible sound, on the day we sailed into Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve.

Initially, we were not very interested in this sailing day to view ice and snow in a national park since we had seen many glaciers in our lifetimes. However, the literature and numerous announcements piqued my interest: I was surprised that all ship activities were cancelled for the day, and wondered why we were asked to be quiet as we sailed through the national park.

Eventually, we decided to go outside to see this purported spectacular scenery, and realized that we could never have imagined the indescribable splendour in this piece of Alaska accessible only by sea.  Each glacier had its own rugged characteristics, varied colours, and unique beauty.  When we later joined the crowds on the upper enclosed Promenade Deck, we marvelled at the hushed conversations of the normally boisterous cruise crowd:  the ever-changing views of the the enormous glaciers commanded silence and respect.

  • Glacier Bay Nat Pk & Preserve - Cliff on Deck 1

Again, I felt that tangible musical atmosphere, but this time the connection was not between a live performer and audience, but me feeling a deep soul-satisfying oneness with nature and my Creator.

Thank you, Holland America and the crew of our ship Nieuw Amsterdam, for a trip without minutes or hours and for the gift of time to hear the beat of music.

Most of all, thank you for putting out the elevator mats.

Otherwise, we might not have known when to get off the ship.

Cruisers on the Nieuw Amsterdam


Special thanks to our Travel Agent:  Suzanne Wickenden, [email protected]


I sent this article to Damian Brell.  I felt honoured that he replied and gave me permission to share his comments with you:

Hi Marilyn, Thank you for your truly kind, thoughtful and greatly humbling words. I have not read anything that explains my performances with such candour – in fact, everything you wrote has always been of paramount concern to me when I perform, however, it often occurs without my having even realised it. I suppose it might have something to do with switching from conscious realtime into another dimension or mode of subliminal subconsciousness. I’m sure it has been the basis of many a study by musicologists and psychologists! If you don’t much mind, I would like to share your words. Once again, thanks for your words, which speak of something I do which is both inherent but perhaps inexplicable. At the very least, I am sincerely gratified to have created a small memory for you and the other people who came to see me. Thank you. Yours truly, Damian

You might wish to check him out on Google!


Make sure to read the complete travel series:

FROM VACATION WARS TO CRUISING ALASKA

Vacation Wars

He Won, She Won

When Time Stopped, the Music Started

Fun in Alaska

Dreaming About Cruising



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18 Comments

  1. Shirley Shirley

    Interesting to hear of your cruise. Especially to hear of music concerts you attended —.
    It’s a great experience to Cruise ❗️Gary and I did an anniversary cruise on the Caribbean —
    It was great to try one time!!

    • Marilyn Newbury Marilyn Newbury

      It was wonderful!!!

  2. Katherine Fitz Katherine Fitz

    I love how you described everything but especially your connection between stillness and your soul’s ability to respond to the music. It’s quite profound. Thank you.

    • Marilyn Newbury Marilyn Newbury

      Don’t know if I replied to this yet – but I found your words to be very encouraging. Thank you!

  3. Yvonne Marshall Yvonne Marshall

    I enjoyed reading your article, so glad you had a wonderful and good music filled trip. I almost felt like I was on the cruise with you. Thanks for sharing Marilyn and much love to you both.

    Yvonne

    • Marilyn Newbury Marilyn Newbury

      Thank you, Yvonne! I loved that you felt as if you were on the cruise You are looking great on facebook!.

  4. Ruth Hahn Ruth Hahn

    Beautifully written. I always love to read your stories. I also did this cruise with my husband and two of my children. So many beautiful memories! I love the carpets! God bless you, Marilyn!

    • Marilyn Newbury Marilyn Newbury

      Glad you enjoyed the article. It was a good day to get your encouragement!

  5. Lisa Fisher Lisa Fisher

    Hi Marilyn: I loved your article! The mats definitely hooked me right away. I felt like I had experienced some of the highlights of your cruise through your thoughtfully written article! Thank you!!

    • Marilyn Newbury Marilyn Newbury

      Thank you, Lisa! I got the idea part way from the cruise, and started taking pictures of the one clock, elevators and elevator mats. Cliff likes the article now, but at the time, he thought I was crazy – and he was probably a little embarrassed!

  6. Janice Winsor Janice Winsor

    Awesome! I love this story thanks for sharing! It made me think of ps:23. “He leads me beside quiet waters.” “Green pastures is the ship”. Ha
    Looks like you had a wonderful time! Lovely pictures of a lovely Young couple!
    God Bless!!

    • Marilyn Newbury Marilyn Newbury

      The cruise was exactly like the psalm. Although a little beyond our budget, it was exactly the vacation we needed last summer. We are grateful that we were able to figure out a way to go on this cruise even though we are probably still paying for it. It was well worth it. Glad you enjoyed reading about our story.

  7. Norma Broughton Norma Broughton

    Wow…this made me……long to go on a cruise!!! Beautifully said, Marilyn. You took me right there. Love you guys. Miss you!

    • Marilyn Newbury Marilyn Newbury

      You deserve a cruise! It was the right vacation for us last year. I am grateful that I got one cruise in my lifetime! Glad you enjoyed the piece, and hope you are doing well.

  8. Rob Rob

    I enjoyed this article Marilyn. I too have, at various times of my life, felt that “surreal magic” of music and the connection to the audience that is sometimes mystical in quality.
    Have you ever considered sending this to be published in Reader’s Digest or a travel magazine? I’m not a publisher but I would think it would be fun to find out if it got accepted somewhere and put “out there” to the publishing world.
    I found the motif of the mats in the elevators, drew me in to your story in a pleasant way. Thank for sharing it!

    • Marilyn Newbury Marilyn Newbury

      Thanks Rob! I appreciate the encouragement. Many years ago I submitted articles to magazines, including Reader’s Digest, but eventually got discouraged with the mounting rejection slips. I did receive some positive feedback from a writer in residence a few years back, but did not know which steps to take to get published.

      The website has given me the opportunity to share my writing. Given your comments, I need to keep an open mind and perhaps need to try submitting my material once again. I sometimes wonder if I am writing pieces of a book. Time will tell, but in the meantime, I am very grateful for my newfound writing family!

  9. Brenda Brenda

    Great pictures. I think ice and snow are hugely underrated. I would love to take a trip to the great north and take an excursion on a dogsled. The air, the views, just breathtaking, I bet. Sending love and thanks for sharing.

    • Marilyn Newbury Marilyn Newbury

      Thank you! Maybe you and I should take a dogsled trip together – don’t think Cliff will be interested! He did enjoy the cruise, though, so that’s a start. Good to hear from you & hope you are doing well…

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