Accents
'United Nations' of MS Noordam (4)
This column sums up my articles on our Alaska cruise, May 13-19, aboard MS Noordam of the Holland America Line. For one week, we were fed with a daily digest of the New York Times and a newssheet of the day's program of activities. The last issue, datelined May 19, carried a unique headline: "United Nations" of Noordam. A brief article every word of which deserves quoting:
"Nowhere else is the term 'United Nations' better served than on board one of Holland America Line's ships. Here on the Noordam, we prove that people of many nations, religions and beliefs, can work and live together, not only adequately, but very well indeed. Ask any ship employee of Holland America Line what his or her fondest memory of life at sea is and they will tell you it is the joy of meeting such diverse people.
"On board ship we celebrate the national holidays of the Netherlands, England, the Philippines, Indonesia, the United States, and Canada. Each celebration is different and accorded all respect. Religion also plays a large part in the lives of many shipboard personnel. Our staff includes the Catholic, Muslim, Protestant, Hindu and Jewish faiths, to name just a few.
"All religions are respected and time and room is set aside for all to worship as he or she sees fit and proper. The word respect crops up several times in this article. It is probably the key to the harmony that is evident to all who sail our ships, as crew and as guests." Our entourage of five couldn't have agreed more. If only the same harmony were true in the world at large...
If the crew was a hodge-podge of workers from many nations, so were the tourists. One Asian whom we thought was a Filipino complimented my husband on the barong he was wearing. "I know that's your national costume," said the guest, an Indonesian, himself in a suit. It was the Captain's Night and there was Rudy proud in barong tagalog, followed by Randy and me in formal Filipina attire. You can be garbed in your country's national costume, bearing your own culture's uniqueness yet ready to take in the fun of the evening. If only the same spirit were true in the world at large...
MS Noordam has a resident priest who says Mass daily. On Day 1, a Sunday, we attended Mass in the ship, and heard one of the best homilies yet. He was a white priest, hale and hearty for one retired from a parish assignment. His homily in a nutshell: Do away with restrictive tendencies. I'd like to say thanks to Father What's-his-name by mentioning him here, but not one in the G-7 (us seven tourists) could recall his name. One instance when what a person says is more memorable and remarkable than his persona. The imparted message casts an influence of a lifetime, and that is what really matters. Bless you, Father Never-Mind-the-Name, and bless us, for absorbing the consciousness-raising homily. We were your listeners—composed of whites and a sprinkling of Asians engulfed in the spirit of tolerance. If only the same tolerance were true in the world at large...
When the priest asked us for our individual intentions, the lady beside me immediately prayed for all cancer victims which resonated very well with this writer, a cancer survivor. I then followed the lady with "Lord, help us prevent the insanity of war," after which everybody intoned with the usual, "Lord, hear our prayer." If only prayers said for the good of all were true for the world at large...
There are times when you get names and messages loud and clear. Someone has touched your life and that person dwells in the recesses of the mind. There was Indonesian Mus Mulyadi, room attendant to my daughter's and ours. You couldn't fault Mus for neatness and orderliness. He said our granddaughter Danika reminds him of his family in Indonesia—two kids and a wife doing some clerical job. He has been two years with Noordam now and expects to go on vacation soon. I believe Mus is as caring and polite as the Filipinos and other nationalities could be in the same job—all possessed with high hopes for their families back in the homeland, each going about his/her individual duties, persevering along with fellow crewmembers in pursuit of their dreams. If only the same peaceful co-existence were true in the world at large...
In that harmonious pool of Noordam employees, I met two Filipinas: Karen Santocildes and Meryll Jean Locquiao, both assigned at Crow's Nest that has a capacious dance floor. Karen graciously served virgin pina colada to little Danika who took sips between rocking and swaying to Meryll's music. Karen is a computer science graduate, finds her present job paying well, and plans to open someday her own business. Rolled into one—singer, actress, piano and voice instructor—is Meryll, thrilling us with her songs and accommodating requests from the audience. She grew up in Los Angeles, California, her American twang very evident when we conversed. Called Meryll & the HAL Cats (HAL is the acronym for Holland America Line), the band beautifully synchronized in the varied numbers they played. If only the same synchronization were true in the world at large...
Noordam, its floor area the size of three football fields, exemplified unity in diversity. "United Nations" indeed. If only the same unity were true in the world at large...
(Comments to lagoc@hargray.com)