Lost violin on the train – Wake-up call for all of us?

meltdown on the catwalk

When the 12.18pm train from Paddington arrived at Great Bedwyn Station on Tuesday 29 January 2008, Rob Napier, 67, gathered up his coat and briefcase as usual and prepared to disembark. It was only when Rob was on the pedestrian bridge and the train was pulling away that he remembered the violin he had left in the trunk above his seat. And not just any violin: it was created in 1698 by the Venetian master craftsman Matteo Goffriller. His bow, made by Eugene Sartory of Paris, had been in Rob’s family for over a century.

Rob explained: “It was my first time riding one of the new fast trains to Bedwyn, and when I got off I was thinking about the train and whether it would fit on the platform. I just wasn’t thinking about the violin. I half thought about jumping on it.” the bridge on the roof of the train, but thought better of it. Rob immediately alerted staff at the railway’s lost and found office, who first called Taunton, the next stop. A search there revealed that the violin was gone.

The violin had a history.

Rob, his two brothers and two sisters inherited the valuable instrument from their mother, Elizabeth Hunt, who died in 2006 at the age of 93. As a professional violinist, she had been a member in the 1930s and 1940s of the well-known female Ebsworth String Quartet band. He had purchased the instrument in 1945 because he wanted an instrument that would match the quality used by his colleagues. Elizabeth took the Goffriller with her on trips to India, Africa, and Germany.

Normal was expensive

Rob had just retrieved the violin from an expert in London who had valued the instrument at £180,000 (about $390,000 or €225,000). As he boarded the train for the 70-mile (115-km) journey, Rob explained: “I put it in the luggage rack above my seat. I thought I couldn’t forget it and I didn’t want to look any different. I was trying to behave normally. I’m not a normal person. particularly forgetful.

“It was one of those terrifying moments when I realized as the train pulled away that I had left it on the train,” said Rob. “I think you can imagine the horrible feeling of having a hole in your stomach.”

The frantic and useless search

“We went looking for him,” Rob continued. “My wife and I went through all the stations and left notices, and my sister and cousin made the whole trip on the train the next day, but time has passed and nothing has happened. My brothers and sisters have been very understanding. But that doesn’t hide the disappointment.

Taking a new approach

After months of discreet consultations, many phone calls, and much correspondence, the violin is still missing. That’s why Rob and the insurance company, Allianz, decided to go public, offering a £10,000 (around $20,000 or EUR 12,000) reward for the return of the violin, even though they risk tipping off the thief. about its actual value.

“Most likely someone has it without realizing what it is,” Rob said. “We just want it back. Aside from its value, it has tremendous sentimental value.” Rob was about to lend it to his cousin, Libby Wallfisch, also a professional musician.

“It’s very sad,” said Rob’s wife, Clare. “In fact, it’s a mess. We’re just praying it shows up.”

You identify?

Hop on that train as the countryside zooms by at over 100 miles per hour. You sit focused on your mission to bring the prized fiddle back to Kingsbury Street, Marlborough. He tries to act normal, although he is very nervous, hoping that no one is watching and plotting to steal it. You look around you. No one seems to notice you or the battered violin case on top of you. Opens The times and start reading. The vibration of the speeding train lulls you to sleep, just like the trips you’ve taken for years and years. You turn the page. Oh, this sounds interesting, you tell yourself. By the time the train begins to slow to a stop, you’re mentally asleep, a prisoner of your travel routine, forgetting what made this trip special. You collect your briefcase and coat and climb onto the platform, eager to get to your car.

This incident leads me to wonder what other valuable things we let slip through our hands through inattention or negligence.

lose your valuables

Here’s your spouse, your partner in triumph and trial, with whom you haven’t had a late-night conversation in weeks. There are your two children, who rarely get your full attention, even when they address you directly and passionately. Your Bible (now where is it again?) you have set aside, even though you are a voracious reader. Your reputation, your integrity and your values ​​are scattered here and there around you. Your spirituality, which seemed so promising and nurturing when you were young, you toss on the overhead rack as you settle into your seat. Meanwhile, the train of your life shakes you and shakes you into a stupor, as it heads towards eternity. you yawn Your routine is giving you amnesia for what is precious.

Make your own list. What is priceless but neglected in your life? What would you spend the rest of your days trying to recover if you let it slip away due to a lack of attention?

preventable tragedy

How differently the story would have ended if Rob had placed the violin case on his lap instead of on the trunk! (I suggest this because that’s what I decided to do after losing a digital camera on a bus.) Stay in constant contact with whatever you value. Take time to talk with your spouse every day. Get down to your kids’ level and stop multitasking. Dedicate yourself to regularly reading, pondering, memorizing, and sharing the scriptures. Evaluate your reputation, evaluate your integrity, constantly explore and refine your values. Take the time to invest in your spiritual life, every day. Stay in constant contact with what is precious to you. Don’t let anyone or anything steal them from you.

The biblical warning is clear: “We must pay more attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not slip… How will we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?” (Hebrews 2:1, 3).

Do you want to go deeper?Here are some passages to look at regarding “watch” and “protect”:

• Carelessness: Psalm 119:16; Matthew 23:23, par. Luke 11:42; Acts 6:2; 1 Timothy 4:14.
• Stay spiritually awake and attentive: Matthew 25:13, par. Mark 13:33, 35, 37 and Luke 21:36; 26:41, para. Mark 14:34, 37, 38; Acts 20:31; Romans 13:11; 1 Corinthians 16:13; Ephesians 5:8-17; 6:18; Colossians 4:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-8; 2 Timothy 4:5; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 4:7; 2 John 1:8; Revelation 3:1-3; 16:15

Recommended reading:

• Victor E. Frankl. Man’s Search for Meaning. Between 1942 and 1945, psychiatrist Viktor Frankl worked in four different camps, including Auschwitz, while his parents, brother, and pregnant wife died. Based on his own experience and the stories of his many patients, he argues that we cannot avoid suffering, but we can choose how to face it, find meaning in it, and move forward with renewed purpose. He describes his resulting therapy method, what he calls “logotherapy,” designed to help subjects discover their purpose for living.
• Available online: – Harold G. Koenig, MD “Spiritual Assessment in Medical Practice” (2001) – Gowri Anandaraja, MD and Ellen Hight, MD “Spirituality and Medical Practice: Using HOPE Questions as a Practical Tool for Spiritual Assessment ” (2001)

As inadequate as these are from a biblical perspective, they at least provide a starting point for spiritual self-assessment. See 2 Corinthians 13:5.