Summer Diaries | Sunday, September 3
I'm a lonely lighthouse, not a ship out in the night.
I'm watching the sea.
She's come halfway round the world to see the light
And to stay away from me.
A lovely place to visit - though I wouldn't want to live there - is our hometown lighthouse, open for visits on summer weekends. Fully operational and self-automated, the old girl flashes on and off as we, her guests, clamber up the stairs and gaze out to sea, drawing deep at the mystery and magic of this dreamy and timeless place.
^ What was once the engine room is now the ground floor gathering place for a steady stream of enthusiastic guests who wait their turn to journey to the top. The interior walls are jammed with ancient photos of the lighthouse's previous glory days, but really, my mind is focused only on going up.
^ The stairs are tight and twisting, but with glorious light spilling down from the open cupola at the top, and a handful of well-placed windows, the trip up fills me with excitement and wonder.
^ From the top, the first thing to command my attention is the ferry. Two ferries, actually. The Suquamish and the Tokitae sail back and forth, back and forth, criss-crossing Possession Sound between Whidbey Island and the mainland. Their endless devotion to duty reminds me of the lighthouse, and I never tire of them.
^ On the one hand, she's not much more than an oversize, super shiny porch light. But then again, she is an icon of a time gone by, a gentle reminder of how humans once looked out for one another. I think of the days when this place was a lonely outpost, rather than a picturesque piece of suburbia, and I wonder how it is that the world changes so quickly.
^ At the foot of the lighthouse lies a well-grounded garden. They are almost exact opposites, aren't they, the place where roots grown deep into the soil, juxtaposed at the foot of a tower designed to look out only over the dark, rolling waters, with only a narrow seawall keeping each in its proper place.
^ South of the lighthouse sits the original residence, where lighthouse keepers and their families once maintained this lonely outpost. Young families are still called to this spot; on this day, a bride and groom document their wedding on the rocky, windswept beach.
^ There goes another ferry. Back and forth, back and forth.
^ Back on the ground, I take in the luxuriant fullness of the late summer hydrangea. Like our dear lighthouse, she's an elegant lady whose richness has only deepened with time. How fortunate I am to have both of them in my life.
I'm rolling all my golden moments into one
Want to shine like the sun for one more summer day
Shine like a lighthouse for one last summer night
See me flashing on, flashing, fading away.
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Lyrics to Lighthouse by James Taylor
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My 2023 Summer Diaries:
💗💗💗James Taylor’s music is my old friend, but not sure I’ve heard this one…I’m checking it out now! Love how your words warmly bring life to memories! 💗💗💗
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